V15n16 - GOOD ideas

vol. 15 no. 16

FREE

December 21 - 27, 2016 | subscribe free for news and invitations at JFPDaily.com Your Metro Events Calendar is at

JFPEVENTS.COM

Love

n i t c e n n o C s o e t m

r o b h g i e N y h T

i w o T H d e d i v i D

s. v s t n a Inform s DA Hind , p 8 rs Jr. Summe

16 p p , Ladd

18

s t a E y a rs d e i f l f o u H t l S g n i Loca Cardon, p 20 k c o St Helsel, p 22

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

YOUR FUTURE IS BRIGHTER AT MC.

2

JACKSONIAN Emmi Sprayberry Imani Khayyam

N

ine years ago, when Swell-o-Phonic was in the space where Fondren Public is currently located, it wasn’t just a skate shop and clothing store. It also housed an art exhibition space, Icon Gallery, and Jackson native Emmi Sprayberry was its manager.

“(Ron Chane) came up with the idea, and was looking for a gallery manager, gallery coordinator, and had contacted me about it, and I was like, ‘I would love that.

I would love to be considered for this. That would be great.’ We talked at length over the phone, met up together, and decided it would be great to do.”

Shortly after she and Chane started the gallery in 2007, her mother-in-law, Mary Sprayberry, learned that he had cancer. After Mary died about a year later, Sprayberry left her job managing the gallery.

“I decided it was just best to focus on family,” she says.

Her aunt, Barbara Dees, gave Sprayberry her first camera when she was a child.

Ever since then, Sprayberry says, she has always had a camera in her hands.

During her junior and senior years at Jackson Preparatory School, she focused even more on photography, participating in competitions and concentrating on the medium for her senior portfolio.

She has studied photography at the

contents

Savannah College of Art and Design, the University of Southern Mississippi and Belhaven University, where she is finishing up her bachelor’s degree in the subject.

In her business, Bee’s Knees Photography, Sprayberry does a lot of weddings and portraits, but for her degree, she is focusing more on fine-art photography.

Sprayberry, 32, is also the general manager and art-gallery manager at Deep South Pops. Before going to work there in August 2015, she came in every day for a full week after the shop’s first location opened in June 2015.

“And I sat and observed,” she says.

She wondered what the shop was doing with the walls, as she felt that they needed something. The owner, Jake Franklin, told her he was thinking of turning the walls into a gallery space. The August after the shop opened, Sprayberry, along with Phelan Harris and Sara Ziglar, became the first artists to show their work at Deep South. After the opening exhibit, she approached Franklin about managing the gallery. She became the shop’s general manager in November 2015.

She and her husband, David Sprayberry, who is the assistant director of university relations at Belhaven, have two children: Riley, 11, and Zoe, 7.

—Amber Helsel

cover illustration

by Zilpha Young

6 ............................ Talks 12 ................... editorial 13 ...................... opinion 16 ............ Cover Story 20 ........... food & Drink 22 ................. Gift Guide 24 ......................... 8 Days

8 Informants Turn on Hinds DA

At least two former assistant district attorneys are testifying against Hinds DA Robert Shuler Smith in his trial this week.

20 Eatin’ Local for the Win

Still trying to figure out what to do for holiday food?

Let these restaurants and businesses help you out.

25 ........................ Events 25 ....................... sports 26 .......................... music 27 ........ music listings 28 ...................... Puzzles 29 ......................... astro 29 ............... Classifieds

26 Appreciating the Vamps

“The more time goes by—we’re 20 years with this—it makes me appreciate (The Vamps) that much more, especially with someone like (Booker Walker) passing, which affected me a lot. I had a real affinity for Booker, and any time we had an out-of-town gig, we’d ride together, and I’d drag stories out of him that he would never talk about.”

—Denny Burkes, “The Vamps Rev Up”

December 21 - 27 , 2016 • jfp.ms

4 ............ Editor’s Note

Imani Khayyam; flickr/KimberlyKV; Imani Khayyam

December 21 - 27, 2016 | Vol. 15 No. 16

3

editor’s note

by Amber Helsel, Assistant Editor

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays

E

ver since I was a kid, I’ve always been really excited about Christmas. I would count down the days until I got out of school for winter break, or when the semester ended in college, or just the days when I’d finally get to open presents.

Last year was my first Christmas to spend as a single adult living on her own.

The Jackson Free Press art director, Kristin Brenemen, gave me a little tree, and I decorated it with brightly colored yarn, dinosaurs, little ball ornaments and a paper burrito and a blue chicken wing. I used one of my most favorite Christmas gifts, a taco truck, as the topper (thanks, Donna Ladd).

It wasn’t much, but I was excited nonetheless. I even managed to pose the yearly question to my mom: “Can I open a present early?” She said no, of course.

I’m very conscious of my un-holiday mood this year. I’m incredibly aware of the fact that my tree still isn’t up, and with me finishing up gifts, working on art projects, and seeing friends and family, I realize that it’s probably not going to happen. I don’t have any decorations, even though I told myself that this year, I would put effort toward it. I haven’t yet, and I doubt I’m going to (though I may find some time to put a strand of lights around my door).

To be honest, it seems like a lot of people are in the same boat as I am. It’s been a tumultuous year, with the crazy election cycle, really cool people dying left and right, and situations such as the one in Aleppo and the Dakota Access Pipeline.

It’s hard to feel the holiday spirit when it feels like the entire world has gone bonkers, but I don’t think it’s impossible. I think we’re too busy being preoccupied with the rest of the world that we forget to just stop and take a moment to breathe and appreciate the world around us.

We forget that it’s not all crazy.

Good things have happened this year.

I try to live by two mottos: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” and “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” I think both of those are important in this season, especially with the state of the world.

So if you’re having trouble getting in the spirit, and you’re mad at the world, why not do some good? Donate to a cause you believe in or a nonprofit

It feels like the entire world has gone bonkers.

Hillary Clinton drew nearly 3 million more votes than Donald Trump, even if she didn’t win the election. The money raised from the ice-bucket challenge that took over the Internet earlier this year helped fund research that found the gene that causes Lou Gehrig’s disease, which means we’re that much closer to a cure.

Pokemon Go happened this year.

We found out this year that Harriet Tubman is going to replace Andrew Jackson on the $20 bill. “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” and “Star Wars: Rogue One” came out this year.

So even if things look bad, they’re not all that terrible. There is still some good left in the world.

You just have to look for it.

you want to support. Go and serve food to the homeless. Or if you see someone struggling, just show them a little kindness, whatever you think that needs to be and can manage.

As someone who has been struggling lately, I can tell you first hand that it helps. If you do that for someone, they can pay it forward to someone else, and so on and so forth. When you start that cycle, it continues, and it can give some small light to the world. It can drive out some of the darkness.

And if you’re the one struggling, give back in whatever way you can, even if it’s just buying a gift for someone.

Remember this, because this is something a lot of people forget: The

holiday season isn’t just about Christmas.

Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Pancha Ganapati and so many other holidays fall around this time of year.

So when we say “Happy Holidays,” it’s not a slight against Christmas. It’s just an acknowledgement that there are other traditions that matter, and by extension, other people with different beliefs who matter. It also makes me sad that more people are worried about what’s on a Starbucks cup than all the injustice in the world around them.

Let’s talk about that holiday cup.

Yes, Starbucks is a giant corporation, but at least for this holiday season, it’s putting a focus on community and creating a common thread between everyone. This GOOD Ideas issue covers just that, and it might give you some helpful advice on talking to family during Christmas or Hanukkah or whatever your celebration is.

In this day and age, being able to talk and listen to each other is so crucial, and I think we’ve forgotten how to do that. It’s time we relearned to do it. It’s time that we become more accepting of each other and other points of view. It is time we started loving each other again despite our differences.

So with that, I say Merry Christmas, Hanukkah sameach, happy holidays, and have a happy new year.

Assistant Editor Amber Helsel’s alter ego is Umaru Doma. Some call her the Demon Lady of Food (not really, but she wouldn’t object to it). She likes to cook, eat, make art and pet cats. Email story ideas to amber@jacksonfreepress.com.

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

contributors

4

Donna Ladd

Sierra Mannie

Tim Summers Jr.

Arielle Dreher

Imani Khayyam

Dustin Cardon

Kimberly Griffin

Zilpha Young

JFP Editor in Chief and cofounder Donna Ladd is a Neshoba County native who is determined to spread as much racial understanding as she can in her lifetime. She wrote the cover package about having meaningful conversations.

Hechiner Report Education Reporting Fellow Sierra Mannie’s opinions of the Ancient Greeks can’t be trusted nearly as much as her opinions of Beyoncé. She wrote about teacher licensing for this issue.

City Reporter Tim Summers Jr. enjoys loud live music, teaching his cat to fetch, long city council meetings and FOIA requests. Send him story ideas at tim@jacksonfreepress.com.

He wrote about the Robert Shuler Smith trial.

News Reporter Arielle Dreher is working on finding some new hobbies and adopting an otter from the Jackson Zoo. Email her story ideas at arielle@jacksonfreepress. com. She wrote about criminal-justice reform.

Staff Photographer Imani Khayyam is an art lover and a native of Jackson. He loves to be behind the camera and capture the true essence of his subjects. He took lots of photos for the issue between uplifting everyone’s spirits.

Web Editor Dustin Cardon is a graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi. He enjoys reading fantasy novels and wants to write them himself one day. He wrote about Christmas catering options.

Advertising Director Kimberly Griffin is a fitness buff and foodie who loves chocolate and her mama. She’s also Michelle Obama’s super secret BFF, which explains the Secret Service detail.

Zilpha Young is an ad designer by day, painter, illustrator, seamstress and freelance designer by night. Check out her design portfolio at zilphacreates.com. She designed the cover and several ads.

presented by:

Mississippi

01.07.17

MArathon years Running

Jackson, Miss. www.msbluesmarathon.com

Volunteer registration now open on our website!

This Holiday

Be the Designated Driver.

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi, A Mutual Insurance Company, is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

5

“ I think (MDE) having control over everything that relates to education is really a good idea.”

District Attorney Robert Shuler Smith’s trial is under way. p. 8

— Dr. Carey Wright, on why MDE opposes establishing a separate agency to license teachers and ed programs in the state

Thursday, December 15

A jury convicts Dylann Roof on all 33 counts in the Charleston church shooting. The jury reconvenes next month to consider the death penalty.

Friday, December 16

The FBI supports the CIA’s conclusion that Russia interfered in the presidential election with the goal of supporting Republican candidate Donald Trump. … President Obama promises that the U.S. will retaliate against Russia for meddling in America’s election process, an accusation the Kremlin and Donald Trump deny.

Campaign Finance, BP Money Bills Await Legislators

by Arielle Dreher

T

hanks to BP, Mississippi has additional income to spend in the 2017 legislative session. The state received its first payment from BP from the 2010 oil-spill settlement last summer. Where legislators want to spend that money could be a point of contention in the upcoming session. Coast lawmakers are likely to insist on spending the money in their districts where the damage occurred,

and others will want the whole state to benefit from the funds.

Back in June, the state received $150 million in the first settlement out of a total of $2.2 billion, half of which will fund environmental restoration on the coast. The Legislature has to figure out what to do with the remaining $750 million.

Rep. Charles Busby, R-Pascagoula, wants the money to stay on the coast for

Imani Khayyam File Photo

Wednesday, December 14

Yahoo discloses a gargantuan breach affecting more than a billion user accounts, the largest such attack in history. … A cease-fire deal between rebels and the Syrian government in the city of Aleppo collapses, scuttling plans to evacuate tens of thousands of civilians.

Saturday, December 17

“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” jumps to the top of the weekend box office, scoring the second-best December opening ever with $155 million in estimated ticket sales.

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

Sunday, December 18

Republican Sen. John McCain, chairman of the Armed Services Committee, joins Democrats in calling for a special select committee to investigate foreign cyberattacks. … France strikes a compromise with Russia on a U.N. resolution to prevent “mass atrocities” in besieged areas of Aleppo in Syria.

6

Monday, December 19

Mississippi’s six presidential electors cast their votes for Donald Trump for president. ... Hinds County District Attorney Robert Shuler Smith’s trial begins with the dismissal of similar charges against Assistant District Attorney Jamie McBride, who is set to testify.

Tuesday, December 20

Outgoing North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory announces that he will call a special session to repeal HB2, a law limiting protections for LGBT people.

Get breaking news at jfpdaily.com.

Rep. Charles Busby, R-Pascagoula, wants the Mississippi Legislature to establish a trust fund controlled along the Gulf Coast to administer funds for projects using the BP oil settlement money.

12 Days of

Christmas in Jackson

by JFP Staff

W

e all know about the “12 Days of Christmas,” right? What should that look like for Jackson? Here’s what we think.

projects that would increase the tax base there and bring more money back into the general fund.

First, he said that repairing the runway at Trent Lott International Airport could help bring back three airbus suppliers that left because the runway did not have the weight capacity necessary for them to do business. The project would cost around $8 million, Busby told the Jackson Free Press, but it would be worth it to bring back the suppliers and jobs.

Busby also mentioned using the money to expand retail zones and commercial development in other parts of Jackson County .

“We would like to see a transfer bill that would automatically transfer that money into a fund that is controlled along the coast,” Busby said of the settlement.

Coast Democrat and House Minority Whip Rep. David Baria, D-Waveland, said he will propose legislation to set up an entity composed of members appointed by state and local elected leaders to approve all projects and help invest in long-term projects with the funds. The entity would serve as a “clearinghouse” for any long-term investments with part of the money.

House Speaker Philip Gunn said he will continue to have ongoing discussions with his members about how to

A revival on Farish Street

Seven off-Broadway plays

Two museums opening

Eight colorful murals

Three more JATRAN buses rolling

Nine good sidewalks Ten houses renovated

Four more parks for playing

Eleven City workers

Five jazz clubs

Twelve trucks for filling potholes

Six new local restaurants

“We would like to see a transfer bill that would automatically transfer that money into a fund that is controlled along the coast.”

“We are not going to change what we have been doing for this particular item from what we have done in the past.”

— Rep. Charles Busby, R-Pascagoula, on what he and most lawmakers from the coast would like to see happen with BP settlement funds.

— Council President Tyrone Hendrix said after he removed an agenda item about the possible settlement of a lawsuit between a former mayoral assistant and the mayor

Saving Tax Dollars with Re-entry and Rehabilitation

by Arielle Dreher

Campaign-finance Reform

Only pieces of Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann’s omnibus election code bill passed in the last legislative session, like

Mississippi Department of Corrections Commissioner Marshall Fisher supports community corrections. He told lawmakers that the state is in dire need of mental-health and re-entry courts.

After graduating from Duke Law School, Starrett said, the young man clerked for him and now is a successful lawyer in another state. Expungements would also enable former inmates to receive medical or nursing licenses.

Banning the Box?

The state’s re-entry council is asking the Legislature to consider a “ban the box” measure. Banning the box, Starrett admitted was “controversial,” but he said it worked.

“‘Ban the box’ doesn’t mean you have to hire felons; ‘ban the box’ only means that you will give that person an

the ability to update your voter-registration information online if you are already registered. The highly technical bill will likely make its way through the statehouse again, Sen. Sally Doty, R-Brookhaven, said. Lawmakers could pull out some measures that affect campaign-finance reform, however, and put them into separate bills.

Doty said the campaign-finance bill will likely be similar to what came out of conference last session, with suggestions from long-term members who voiced concerns about certain changes last session, like itemization for credit-card purchases.

“We want to protect those members who have made decisions based on (current campaign-finance laws)—we don’t want to change the rules mid-stream in other words, and really I think within a couple

opportunity for an interview,” he said. “Don’t write them off before they ever have a chance at an interview.”

The “ban the box” movement was intended to give formerly incarcerated Americans a chance at finding a job after leaving the corrections system, at least allowing a chance at an interview (but not necessarily precluding them from a background check).

Research shows that jobs and employment can keep formerly incarcerated people from re-offending, and two recent studies show that increasing the availability of jobs for former offenders could reduce recidivism rates.

In the U.S., federal employment applications do not have the “box” because President Barack Obama banned them. Neighboring states have also banned the box on state employment applications.

Two 2016 studies show that “ban the box” policies might lead to discriminatory practices in hiring, however.

One from the University of Michigan found that “BTB may open doors to some applicants with records, but this gain comes at the expense of another group that faces serious employment challenges: black men.”

That is, without the box, the study indicates that some employers might then eliminate black men from consideration altogether, giving “a clear advantage (to) white applicants who receive 23 percent more callbacks compared to otherwise identical black applicants.”

The study says this unintended consequence of the policies, implemented at local, state and federal levels around the country, does not mean the BTB policies won’t work.

of election cycles we will be through with anyone having a big amount left in their account,” she said.

House Speaker Philip Gunn said he supports reforms including line itemizations for credit-card expenses and banning the use of campaign-finance funds on personal expenses, which met challenges in the House last year.

“I think we want to look at ways that legislators use their campaign-finance funds—make sure that they use them in a way that pertain to their purpose as a legislator,” Gunn told reporters Dec. 8. “They get donations to be used to help us in our jobs as legislators.”

The Clinton Republican supports not allowing lawmakers to use their campaign funds on items, like purchasing cars, that

more RE-ENTRY, see page 10

do not pertain to their role as legislators.

Gunn said ensuring lawmakers cannot use campaign finance funds to reimburse lawmakers for expenses they are already paid for with their legislative paychecks is also important. Lawmakers are reimbursed for some travel related to their legislative duties, like coming to and from Jackson already, but campaign finance funds, Gunn said, could be used for attending events in one’s role as a legislator that they couldn’t be reimbursed for by the state.

“If my duties as a legislator require me to go to another town in my function as a legislator, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with reimbursed on gas for that,” the House speaker said. more BILLS see page 8

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

spend the money.

“I think the money personally ought to be spent on economic-development projects and by that I mean projects that are going to generate a return, going to generate dollars versus spending it on plugging budget holes,” Gunn told reporters Dec. 8.

Gunn said lawmakers are still trying to evaluate where the damage specifically occurred in 2010, and that any economicdevelopment projects should benefit the whole state and generate revenue and return for everyone. He did not specify where those projects could or should be located.

Imani Khayyam File Photo

F

ormer inmates could leave Mississippi prisons with dignity and be able to find jobs, U.S. District Judge Keith Starrett told the Mississippi House Corrections Committee last week. The advocate of drug courts and re-entry programs for former inmates said some of the reforms would not have fiscal consequences.

Starrett, a member of the Mississippi Re-entry Council, asked the committee to consider changing state law that takes away a person’s driver’s license if he or she fails to pay child support or fines. The Department of Public Safety can suspend a Mississippian’s license if they are involved in a car accident with serious damage or loss of life or fail to pay child support. The state must revoke a license of anyone who commits manslaughter in a driving accident, commits a felony using a motor vehicle, has multiple DUIs or breaks the Uniformed Controlled Substance Act, among other convictions, the 2012 driver’s manual from DPS shows.

Having a driver’s license is a necessity, especially to find a job after returning to the community, Starrett said.

“Don’t get me wrong, we want them to pay their child support or the fines … but it’s crucial to their long-term success that they have a job,” Starrett said at the meeting last week. “If you take away the driver’s license, you take away most of them’s opportunity to get to work and have a meaningful job.”

Starrett suggested expanding expungements—clearing criminal records—and banning the box many employers require applicants to check if they have prior convictions.

One of his former law clerks, Starrett said, had committed a crime when he was 18, and after serving his time, his record was wiped clean, and he was able to apply for law school.

7

THE DA FILES

Becoming an Informant on a Drive to Jackson

by Tim Summers Jr.

A

ssistant District Attorney Ivon Johnson was shopping in Natchez on Feb. 24, 2016, when FBI Special Agent Robert Culpepper approached him as part of a Hinds County corruption investigation. Culpepper already had a warrant for the contents of Johnson’s cellphone in his investigation of whether attorneys in District Attorney Robert Shuler Smith, or Smith himself, were taking bribes or trying to illegally influence the outcome of criminal cases.

“We felt that there might be evidence

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

of a conspiracy on there,” Culpepper said of Johnson’s cellphone in Smith’s Hinds County trial for interfering with prosecutions of Christopher Butler on Dec. 20.

“One day when we knew he wouldn’t be at work, we snatched the phone out of his hand, and took the phone to have the contents dumped, then had a conversation with him after that.”

During the ride back to Jackson with Agent Culpepper, Johnson agreed to work with the FBI to snare Smith. “(Johnson) said he accepted responsibility for every-

8

BILLS from page 7 Voter Reforms in Jeopardy

Lawmakers left some voter reforms like early voting and online voter registration on the cutting room-floor last session.

Sen. David Blount, D-Jackson, served on the secretary of state’s bipartisan committee that proposed several of these reforms, and

he was doing so that he could potentially gather evidence of a … conspiracy.”

At the time, Culpepper testified, the State did not know about the investigation, and would get the evidence later. “We kept it really tight,” Culpepper said in court.

Culpepper would secretly record Smith talking about cases three times in the next year. Those recordings later became part of Smith’s trial for helping wire-fraud and drug-trafficking suspect Christopher Butler beat his charges.

Assistant Attorney General Bob An-

derson called Culpepper, the first witness in the trial, to explain that his Jackson division focused in on Johnson after information his office received in 2015 when investigating potential local corruption.

Culpepper said that during the time in which Johnson continued to work in the district attorney’s office and report to the FBI that Robert Henderson—a man then-Gov. Haley Barbour had pardoned for previous criminal activity—contacted him about dropping the bond amount for a defendant in the Hinds County justice system in exchange for money.

From there, the FBI was able to arrest Henderson as well for bribery. Johnson pleaded guilty to bribery charges in a U.S. District Court in Louisiana earlier this year and became a state’s witness.

During his opening statement, Anderson outlined three points the State is seeking to prove about Smith. It plans to show that the district attorney conspired against Hinds County Judge Jeff Weill because he tried to stop Smith from dropping charges against Butler. Smith issued a subpoena to the judge to appear before a grand jury.

The State also plans to show that Smith attempted to get Butler off wirefraud charges by issuing a subpoena and trying to indict both assistant attorneys general Shaun Yurtkuran and Patrick Beasley who were involved in that case.

Anderson said Smith violated the final charge—a district attorney attempting to assist or defend a criminal defendant— when he visited Butler in jail, calling him his “client.” Smith was a defense attorney before becoming Hinds’ top prosecutor.

Jim Waide, Smith’s attorney, said during his response to Anderson’s opening statement that Smith was the highest law enforcement officer in the county and was attempting to ensure that Butler received justice. He called the attorney general’s ef-

forts to prosecute Smith “personal.”

“There’s a great personal vindictiveness between the AG’s office and Mr. Smith,” Waide said.

On the first day of trial, the attorney general’s office dropped charges against former co-defendant Assistant District Attorney Jamie McBride, stating that he would testify for the State against Smith.

Dale Danks Jr., McBride’s attorney and the former Jackson mayor, filed a Dec. 16 letter to presiding Special Judge Larry Roberts, arguing that McBride’s case should be separate from Smith’s because The Clarion-Ledger had published “extremely prejudicial” allegations days before the hearing, implying that Smith and McBride were involved in a bribery scheme together.

The attorney general’s office then stated in open court on the first day of trial that McBride would testify against Smith.

During his cross-examination of Culpepper, Waide asked the agent if he had met with McBride leading up to the charges against Smith. Culpepper said that McBride, during an August meeting with the FBI, had admitted that Smith had held meetings abut the Butler case. Culpepper called McBride “cagey,” saying he had expressed a desire to give them information but feared reprisal from Smith, including termination from his position as assistant district attorney.

“(McBride) wanted to answer any question we had fully,” Culpepper told the court, but feared being fired. The agent said he did not know the State planned to drop charges against McBride and that the attorney general’s office needed to address what the alleged conspiracy involving Smith and McBride looked like.

Read up on the Hinds County DA saga at jfp.ms/DAFiles. Follow reporter Tim Summers Jr.’s daily tweets from the Smith trial at @tims_alive on Twitter.

said he wants to pass legislation that allows both early voting and online registration.

Last year’s reforms allowed Mississippians already registered to vote to change their addresses online, but those registering to vote for the first time cannot register online. Additionally, Mississippians who want to vote early or are going to be out of town must cast an affidavit ballot, something that early voting could eliminate.

Blount also reiterated the importance of campaign-finance reform.

Doty said she is unsure about online voter registration in the wake of the 2016 election, due to people’s rightful or wrongful concerns about how hacking affected the election. She said legislators might need to ensure there are no problems before proposing a bill enabling it.

She does not foresee pushing early voting in the election-reform package.

Blount still believes early voting is important and would keep Mississippi current with other states. At least 35 states have sep-

arate early voting provisions in their state law, vote.org data.

“I continue to support early voting and online voter registration. Most states have that—a bipartisan committee led by Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann has endorsed online voting and online voter registration,” Blount told the Jackson Free Press last week.

Email state reporter Arielle Dreher at arielle@jacksonfreepress.com. Follow her at @ arielle_amara on Twitter. Comment: jfp.ms.

Imani Khayyam

The trial against Hinds County District Attorney Robert Shuler Smith (pictured) started Dec. 19, promising testimony from at least two assistant district attorneys from his office.

thing he had done, told us he wanted to cooperate in any way he could, and then started working with us,” Culpepper told the court. During the course of the next six months, Johnson would record Smith and others, including videotapes of meetings.

“[W]e had enough evidence to arrest him. But we allowed him to keep working as an ADA, because he was working under our direction,” Culpepper said of Johnson.

“Everything he was doing he was reporting to us several times a week, probably every day by phone. We were aware of everything

Naughty Nice?

OR

We’ve got you covered!

Saturdays • 6pm-11pm Sundays • 2pm-7pm Don’t miss your chance to roll the giant die to win awesome prizes! Earn entries now!

Excludes Saturday, December 31.

Saturday, December 31 7pm-2am Don’t miss this chance to win up to $2,017 Cash! One Hot Seat winner will be chosen every half hour!

Monday-Wednesday in December

1046 Warrenton Road • Vicksburg, MS 39180 riverwalkvicksburg.com • 601-634-0100 Must be 21 or older to enter casino. Management reserves all rights to alter or cancel any event at any time without notice. Gambling problem? Call 1-888-777-9696. ©2016 Riverwalk Casino • Hotel. All rights reserved.

Download our new app!

Mon. - Sat., 10 a.m. - 9 p.m.

Maywood Mart Shopping Center 1220 E. Northside Dr. 601-366-5676 www.mcdadeswineandspirits.com Please Drink Responsibly

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

Come in tonight and earn 50 points to receive a FREE BUFFET! Redeem at our allnew kiosk. Points must be earned between 8am-10pm on the promotional day.

9

TALK | education

Licensing Mississippi’s Teachers: A Shift in Control?

by Sierra Mannie

M

(teacher) candidates of the importance of applying scientific research to the teaching of reading,” the authors of the report wrote. “But they have little knowledge about the research or how to apply the research to instruction.”

This year, the advancement of thirdgrade literacy has topped priority lists for education leaders and stakeholders in

State Superintendent of Education Dr. Carey Wright says she felt licensing should stay in the hands of the Mississippi Department of Education.

RE-ENTRY from page 7 “[E]ven if (“Ban the Box”) increases racial discrimination by employers, it does not necessarily follow that it will increase racial disparity in employment on balance,” University of Michigan researchers wrote in their June 2016 study.

Researchers suggest that policymakers consider banning the box policies in accordance with other interventions in order to reverse the adverse effects against primarily young men of color.

“Race-based statistical discrimination in hiring is unlawful, and if the hiring discrimination laws were effectively enforced or operated as an effective deterrent, BTB could not have this unintended consequence,” the Michigan study reported.

Changing the state’s license-suspension laws or adding a “ban the box” policy would not cost the State money, while other reforms like building a skilled nursing facility for elderly parolees would. The State would need to pay to expand mental-health programs for inmates as well as repurposing an old facility for aging inmates to use as a skilled nursing facility in the future.

10 “It’s time to reinvest. (House Bill) 585 is not being December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

Mississippi. Most recently, the State established an arm of the National Campaign for Grade-Level Reading to increase access to resources for communities to help young students be better readers.

This move complements the State’s 2013 Literacy-Based Promotion Act, which developed a “reading gate” for third graders before their schools could promote Imani Khayyam

ississippi leaders may establish a new agency to ensure the quality of teachers and the programs that train them.

The idea came from a task force of education leaders and stakeholders, which Gov. Phil Bryant appointed this year to look at how prepared teachers are for early literacy instruction. One of the recommendations in the task force’s 71-page report suggests creating an independent board for the state’s teachers that not only issues licenses but also vets the state’s educator preparation programs, or EPPs—a responsibility the Mississippi Department of Education’s Office of Education Licensure currently handles.

The task force’s recommendations come on the heels of a January report released by the Barksdale Reading Institute, which said teachers generally lack knowledge of best practices in literacy at a time when the State is increasingly focused on making sure students are reading at grade level. The report revealed that not all teacher training programs in Mississippi are built the same when it comes to reading instruction—which might negatively affect student achievement.

“Generally, there is awareness among

funded totally,” Starrett said last week. “(It is) a good piece of legislation—it’s well-written, we just need to use it and make sure that all the things that are required for re-entry are fully funded.”

Reinvestment Necessary

The state’s corrections department, the parole board, and its several task forces and committees all agree that Mississippi’s corrections system needs to reinvest in reforms, sooner versus later. Those groups are still working to enforce and implement the state’s massive criminal-justice reform bill passed in 2015, and on Dec. 12, they met to discuss the progress and what can happen in the 2017 legislative session. In past years, the Mississippi Department of Corrections has saved money by diverting nonviolent offenders, among other practices.

Gov. Phil Bryant’s budget recommendation says MDOC has saved nearly $23 million “by eliminating reimbursements to counties for housing inmates in joint state-county work programs, renegotiating contracts for a lower per diem per inmate at regional facilities, reducing the state inmate population at regional facilities, rebidding food and medical contracts, closing Walnut Grove Correctional Facility and refinancing debt associated with privately operated prisons.”

them to the fourth grade. Amid criticism that the test’s low standards could not accurately assess fourth-grade readiness, legislators amended the law this year to raise the bar even higher. Now, students must perform two levels above the lowest “passing” score to be promoted to fourth grade. Last year, 85.2 percent of children passed initially; after retests, 92.4 percent of all students passed.

An Independent Board

The recommendation for an independent board in Mississippi came after results in 13 other states, eight of which are top-ranked in 2015 NAEP scores for 4th grade reading.

“In considering possible ways to improve teacher quality, and thus student achievement, examining how these independent boards contribute to higher standards and efficiency seems warranted,” the task force report reads.

Dr. David Rock, dean of the school of education at the University of Mississippi and a member of the subcommittee of task-force members who made the new agency recommendation, says the point is to create a system of consistent standards for all 15 of the state’s teacher preparation

Now, MDOC could reinvest that money in community corrections, which might include ideas discussed at the Dec. 12 meeting, such as an expanded technical violation center and expanding mental health, drug and re-entry courts statewide. MDOC Commissioner Marshall Fisher supports the reforms.

“I think this state is in dire need of re-entry courts and mental-health courts,” he told the committee on Dec. 12.

Of course, these reforms will cost the state money up front—a challenge in a tight budget year. The Joint Legislative Budget Committee’s budget recommendation cuts $10.8 million from the MDOC’s budget for fiscal-year 2018. The governor’s budget recommendation recommends budget cuts of half that much.

Rep. Bill Kinkade, R-Byhalia, who chairs the House Corrections Committee and called the Dec. 12 meeting, agrees that House Bill 585 is not complete, saying the State needs to continue to work on implementing community corrections statewide.

“The point made here is that these recommendations and suggestions and discussions are cost-saving measures,” he told the Jackson Free Press.

“And we save money, but we need to reinvest it into community corrections in these programs.”

Read related coverage at jfp.ms/preventingviolence.

TALK | education

Wishing you a Merry Christmas! including Gov. Phil Bryant, have worked together in order to create recent education legislation, they have not always seen eye-to-eye. The failure of last year’s Initiative 42, which would have forced the state Legislature to fully fund the Mississippi Adequate Education Program, created bitter divisions not only among lawmakers past and present, but also between the Legislature and education leaders.

This year, after initially deciding to honor the White House Title IX directives that provided protections for transgender students, MDE rescinded its support after letters from GOP lawmakers expressed their disapproval and their wish for State Superintendent Dr. Carey Wright to step down if her department did not change its stance.

Wright and State Board of Education Chairwoman Rosemary Aultman disagreed with the task-force recommendations in a letter to the task force, Rock and others.

“Under the authority of the Mississippi State Board of Education, the Mississippi Department of Education is responsible for educator licensure, educator ethics and review and oversight of all educator preparation programs,” the letter says. “There is no need to establish a separate bureaucracy when the MDE already has the capacity, infrastructure and systems in place to effectively administer all of the work associated with educator preparation, licensure and ethics.”

Wright echoed these sentiments to the Jackson Free Press.

“When we got the recommendation we said we would agree to disagree. I think (MDE) having control over everything that relates to education is really a good idea,” she said.

Sierra Mannie is an education reporting fellow for the Jackson Free Press and The Hechinger Report. Email her at sierra@ jacksonfreepress.com.

‘There is no need to establish a separate bureaucracy.’

Separation of Ed and State

Though the Mississippi Department of Education and the Legislature,

Most viral stories at jfp.ms:

1. “New Restaurants Coming to Metrocenter, Baker Donelson LGBT Equality and TrustCare” by Dustin Cardon 2. “Canton’s City of Lights” by Julia Hulitt 3. “Council Pulls Mayor’s Sexual Harassment Settlement from Agenda” by Tim Summers Jr. 4. “The Poverty-Crime Connection” by Lacey McLaughlin 5. “‘One Lake’ Supporters Banking on Federal Bill” by Tim Summers Jr.

Most viral events at jfpevents.com:

1. Priced to Move Vol. 7, Dec. 16-17 2. “A Christmas Story: The Musical,” Dec. 2-22 3. Christmas in Canton, Nov. 25-Dec. 23 4. The Vamps, Dec. 22 5. Annual Kwanzaa Celebration, Dec. 26 Find more events at jfpevents.com.

Friendly, helpful advice for your local mortgage needs. Call us!

HOME LOAN EXPERTS

Cynthia Garland Vice President 601-307-5008 NMLS# 484953

Jasper Welsch

Marketing and Sales Development Coordinator 601-955-6404 NMLS#1503830

Nathan Landrum

Trampis Carr

Joe Brock Faulkner

Denny Weeks

Mortgage Loan Officer 601-209-5129 NMLS# 1386984

Mortgage Loan Officer 601-826-1504 NMLS# 1460965

Senior Loan Officer 601-672-9444 NMLS# 75775

Mortgage Loan Officer 769-232-4682 NMLS# 1499376

2 Professional Parkway, Ste A Ridgeland, MS 39157 www.guarantytrust.com 769-300-5100 Guaranty Trust NMLS #135462

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

programs, which he says are not all governed by the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning board.

Whereas the National Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation now requires national accreditation for all IHL state institutions after transitioning from the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education, it is not a requirement for private institutions. (NCATE programs will transition to NCAEP accreditation in their next review cycles.)

Teacher prep at Millsaps College, for instance, is CAEP-accredited; the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools accredits Blue Mountain College, a private Baptist university in Tupelo. So although teacher preparation is a factor in the new agency recommendation, an “annual, multi-year” review of programs is also critical to make sure they are up-to-par with state standards.

“The MDE teacher licensing area actually governs licensure so that a person who does complete a degree can actually get a license to teach. If you’re a private institution, IHL doesn’t govern that. I don’t know who would review their program each year,” Rock told the Jackson Free Press.

“John Doe has to apply to MDE (for his license) based on certain criteria.

While that is true, there also should be a process where every program is continually reviewed to ensure what they’re offering in the program meets the standards for licensure. MDE expects when we say they graduate, they’ve met those requirements, but it doesn’t mean anyone’s reviewing that.”

“We’re not all living by the same standards,” so it’s not consistent,” he said.

11

Christmas 1971, Christmas 2016

I

huddled in the doorway trying, without much success to get some relief from the blowing snow and the cold. The bowling alley had closed many hours before, and it was a lonely and dark place now.

“What do I do if the terrorists decide my bowling alley would be their next target?” I asked myself. Although armed with a weapon, a standard U.S. Army-issue M16, the Army hadn’t issued any ammunition to go with it. The bayonet was attached, but the scabbard was strapped onto the blade, and if something surprised me, there was no way it would come off in a hurry, encumbered as I was with all my cold-weather gear.

Since the bowling alley was set back from the main street in a little depression, it wasn’t very visible, and without any way to communicate with anyone if the terrorists did come, I’d be alone. My 17-year-old soul shivered, not just from the cold. The terrorists, the Baader-Meinhof gang, who were trained in violence in the Middle East by the best, had been menacing this corner of Europe for months now, and the U.S. Army had beefed up security at its installations during the Christmas season in 1971.

Flash forward to Christmas season 2016 in Strasbourg, France. Huddled in the doorway away from the driving rain, I sipped my glass of “vin chard,” a hot mulled wine that is a favorite at the Christmas markets in France (the Germans also call it “gluhwein”). I watched the soldiers pick their way through the festive crowd. There were four of them—they always came in fours, and they never stood together. They wore camouflage with desert-tan boots, and they carried the FAMAS assault rifle that the French military uses. Their hands were on the pistol grip with the barrel sloped down from right to left across their chests (if they were right handed). An ammunition clip completed each rifle.

Sometimes, you could see a more slender form in the group of soldiers, which indicated that a young woman was serving her country.

I watched as they scanned the crowd and thought to myself that once again this corner of the world, close to where I was in 1971, is being terrorized by a small group of extremists who believe that their ideology gives them the right to kill and maim in order to bring about their world view.

“The Simpsons” once called the French “cheese-eating surrender monkeys,” and in many people’s minds, they are more lovers than fighters. But the French, reeling from two years of bloody terrorist attacks, have not given in.

The Christmas markets go on in Strasbourg, but they have all been moved downtown in the ancient city surrounded by water now plied by the famous “Bateaux Mouche” tourist boats.

But now the water is once again used for defense. Many of the footbridges leading to the island are closed, and other bridges are heavily guarded. The city has parked some of its fleet of trash trucks, covered in Christmas cheer, on the bridges to narrow the roadway. The bridges where the trams enter the island have cobblestones in a checkerboard pattern to prevent anyone from driving down the tracks. Recently, the French arrested a terrorist cell here in Strasbourg. Some members appeared to have been well-liked community members and showed no signs of radicalization.

Strasbourg calls itself “The Capital of Christmas,” and with heightened security, tourists arrive by the boatload. They drink vin chaud and eat bowls of delicious spätzle or try an Alsatian sausage and look for gifts in the markets. But as I watch the hustle and bustle and the elaborate security, I can’t help but wonder how disappointed the Prince of Peace must be as we celebrate his birthday amidst the lack of progress we have made.

R.H. Coupe, a longtime resident of Mississippi, is currently living and working in Strasbourg, France, with his reluctant wife and youngest child.

12 December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

The French have not given in.

Is It Time to Do Away with the Electoral College?

S

everal protesters stood in a line outside the Mississippi Capitol on Dec. 16 chanting “Brief the electors; send it to the House!”

They were primarily protesting the Electoral College, the increasingly problematic way in which the United States has elected its president since it was adopted in 1787.

Protesters have an odd ally against the Electoral College: Gov. Phil Bryant. Before the 2016 election swung to his preferred candidate, Bryant told reporters that the system favors states with higher population areas. States get the same number of electoral votes as they do representatives and senators in Congress. For a small population state like Mississippi, that means only six electoral votes. For a state like Texas, that means 38.

“It has been designed for some time, if you looked at the electoral college, to favor the states like New York, California, others in the population areas,” he told the Associated Press in October.

“So, if you can capture those states, more than likely you can capture the presidency. And oftentimes, we’re referred to just as flyover country. I don’t think that’s proper.”

The electoral college distills who wins the presidency down to 538 national votes, essentially discounting a state’s voters whose candidate loses.

In Mississippi that would be the 40 percent of voters who voted for Hillary Clinton. In a state like California, that would be all the voters who voted for Donald Trump.

In the meantime, a national tally of votes,

called the popular vote, represents a more accurate picture of how America voted if you assume each person’s vote should carry the same weight: In 2016’s case, the U.S. electorate voted overwhelmingly for Hillary Clinton—with almost 3 million more votes cast for the Democrat on Election Day.

A variety of options exist short of a constitutional amendment to do away with the Electoral College. For instance, by apportioning votes according to the popular vote in that state (like Maine and Nebraska do) you get something closer to the popular vote.

Likewise, the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact could essentially nullify the Electoral College if enough states sign on.

(Participants in the Compact, who are essentially agreeing to award all of their state electoral votes to the winner of the national popular vote, would need to represent over 270 electoral votes; currently they cover 165.)

It is time to do away with an outdated system of electing a president that was created in a time when people of color and women were not allowed to vote or run for office. Democrats in Congress are already proposing legislation to do away with the electoral college—a notion that seems to have bipartisan support, as far as Mississippi’s governor was concerned … at least, before the Electoral College voted for his candidate over the popular winner.

We call on Gov. Bryant to continue calling for a much more representative form of election the U.S. president. Every vote should indeed count.

Email letters and opinion to letters@jacksonfreepress.com, fax to 601-510-9019 or mail to 125 South Congress St., Suite 1324, Jackson, Mississippi 39201. Include daytime phone number. Letters may be edited for length and clarity, as well as factchecked.

Funmi “Queen” Franklin

EDITORIAL Assistant Editor Amber Helsel Reporters Arielle Dreher,Tim Summers Jr. Education Reporting Fellow Sierra Mannie JFP Daily Editor Dustin Cardon Music Editor Micah Smith Events Listings Editor Tyler Edwards Writers Richard Coupe, Bryan Flynn, Shelby Scott Harris, Mike McDonald, Greg Pigott, Julie Skipper Consulting Editor JoAnne Prichard Morris ART AND PHOTOGRAPHY Art Director Kristin Brenemen Advertising Designer Zilpha Young Staff Photographer Imani Khayyam ADVERTISING SALES Associate Publisher Kimberly Griffin Sales and Marketing Consultants Myron Cathey, Roberta Wilkerson Sales Assistant Mary Osborne BUSINESS AND OPERATIONS Distribution Manager Richard Laswell Distribution Raymond Carmeans, Clint Dear, Michael McDonald, Ruby Parks Assistant to the CEO Inga-Lill Sjostrom Operations Consultant David Joseph ONLINE Web Editor Dustin Cardon Web Designer Montroe Headd CONTACT US: Letters letters@jacksonfreepress.com Editorial editor@jacksonfreepress.com Queries submissions@jacksonfreepress.com Listings events@jacksonfreepress.com Advertising ads@jacksonfreepress.com Publisher todd@jacksonfreepress.com News tips news@jacksonfreepress.com Fashion style@jacksonfreepress.com Jackson Free Press 125 South Congress Street, Suite 1324 Jackson, Mississippi 39201 Editorial (601) 362-6121 Sales (601) 362-6121 Fax (601) 510-9019 Daily updates at jacksonfreepress.com

The Jackson Free Press is the city’s awardwinning, locally owned newsweekly, reaching over 35,000 readers per week via more than 600 distribution locations in the Jackson metro area—and an average of over 35,000 visitors per week at www.jacksonfreepress.com. The Jackson Free Press is free for pick-up by readers; one copy per person, please. First-class subscriptions are available for $100 per year for postage and handling.

The Jackson Free Press welcomes thoughtful opinions. The views expressed in this newspaper are not necessarily those of the publisher or management of Jackson Free Press Inc. © Copyright 2016 Jackson Free Press Inc. All Rights Reserved

In the Spirit of the Holidays

I

really want to be joyous during the holidays. I do. I want to jump up when my alarm goes off and glide into the shower. I want to skip into work, listen to Christmas music and sing along.

I want to smile at the people who seem to have a hard time and make their day go easier. I want to post funny posts on social media that make people laugh and engage in how wonderful the season has been. I do. I want to be less emotional. I want to feel overjoyed. I want to be in the holiday spirit.

However, I am filled with dread and disappointment. I am sad and melancholy. I am stressed and hard on myself because I can’t shake the funk even as I know it’s there. I can’t seem to move my emotions to a happier place.

Truly, it pisses me off.

I’ve been paying very close attention to these emotions this year in an effort to move past them.

I’ve noticed that many people are going through this. Whether it’s the loss of loved ones or the lack of family being around, it seems that people are struggling this year to find some Christmas delight.

Some aren’t in the best financial situations, which makes them dread shopping for loved ones. Some are just unable to separate the horrible year of 2016 from the holiday season.

Aside from holiday depression and seasonal affective disorder, I think it’s just the heaviness of letting go of one year and trying to prepare for what’s coming that lends to most of the unease—for me, anyway. For some reason, it is necessary for me to let go of the outgoing year in order to move with freedom into the new year.

Whatever worked, I’ll store it in my spirit.

And what didn’t? I like to free that space up and replace it with that which can bring success and growth going forward.

That means, though, that in a fourweek time frame, I have to decompress all that has happened in the previous 11 months and then weigh it all out into something that makes sense to my soul.

That’s a huge feat to undergo and basically makes me unable to connect to anything else during that time frame.

I am useless emotionally during that time. The heartache, disappointments, hurt and failures of that year accompany

the burden of release. Yes, there are good things—great things, too. But those things don’t tend to require the amount of work as the “not so good” things.

It helps to have great people around who know you well enough to know that this is the same time of year that things seem to get hard for you.

For me, it’s been this way since my mother transitioned on Nov. 30, 2010.

Some of my friends know this, and they try to help me through it. But my beautiful daughter doesn’t know. All she knows is it’s Christmas and Kwanzaa time, so she expects her mother to share in her eagerness. I’m thankful for her because I often wonder if I’d be able to get out of bed or leave the house if it were not for her and my desire to see her happy and joyous.

I realize that people don’t want to walk around looking sad-faced. No one wants to be bombarded with questions. No one wants to be triggered into tears they already spent the entire day trying to keep at bay. But, just a little time, a hug here or there can truly bless someone who is caught in a depressive mind state.

Be attentive to the people around you. Even if you don’t have any words of encouragement or if you aren’t in the best place yourself, sometimes a random act of kindness is all it takes to help get someone back on track.

It’s not always in your face. Some people have lived many years masking moments of depression, but I promise you, they have moments where they can’t hide or pretend. Deep down, it helps to know that someone sees and someone cares.

The holiday season should be merry for everyone. The fact is, though, not everyone is feeling merry and bright. So be in the holiday spirit and keep your heart open to those who might be missing someone, overworked, stressed out, far away from their families, losing their jobs, etc.

Holidays are about being together with those who love you and peace to all mankind. Be peaceful to those who struggle to find peace this time of year.

Funmi “Queen” Franklin is a word lover, poet, a truth yeller and community activist. She is the founder of an organization that promotes self-love, awareness and sisterhood.

Be peaceful to those who struggle to find peace.

ALL STADIUM SEATING Listings for Fri. 12/23 – Thur. 12/29

Why Him?

R

Sing

PG

3-D Sing

PG

Assassin’s Creed PG13 3-D Assassin’s Creed PG13 Passengers (2016) PG13 3-D Passengers (2016) PG13 Opens 12/25: Fences PG13 Opens 12/25: La La Land PG13

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story PG13 3-D Rogue One: A Star Wars Story PG13 Collateral Beauty PG13 Manchester By the Sea R Office Cristmas Party R Moana

PG

Fantastic Beasts PG13 Trolls

PG

GIFT CARDS AVAIL ABLE DAILY BARGAINS UNTIL 6PM Online Tickets, Birthday Parties, Group & Corporate Events @ www.malco.com

Movieline: 355-9311

T k WO i t cSISTERS h e n Happy Holidays We’ll be CLOSED on Christmas Day. We will be OPEN Friday 12/23 and Monday 12/26.

Best Fried Chicken, Best of Jackson 2003-16

707 N Congress St., Jackson | 601-353-1180 Mon thru Fri: 11am-2pm • Sun: 11am - 3pm

Do You Get the JFP Daily?

- Exclusive Invite to the Best of Jackson Party!

- Headlines - Events and Music - Special Offers - Ticket Giveaways

Sign up at JFPDaily.com

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

Editor-in-Chief Donna Ladd Publisher Todd Stauffer

13

PAID ADVERTISING SECTION

Learn more about Central Mississippi Non-Profits and How You Can Get Involved!

GIVE BACK

R U HUNGRY D R AW A S M I L E F O U N DAT I O N

EgZhZcih

R U FED I]Z G J =jc\gn Egd\gVb [ZZYh ^c Hb^i] EVg` ZkZgn ;g^YVn Vi +eb! gV^c dg h]^cZ# DkZg &&!%%% edjcYh d[ ]di gZhiVjgVci [ddY hZgkZY id YViZ#

<D6AH/

& HegZVY^c\ d[ =jbVc^in H]VgZ V hb^aZ l^i] hdbZdcZ ' EaZVhZ YdcViZ# =Zae jh gZhidgZ ]deZ ^c ?VX`hdc YgVlhb^aZ#dg\ 6aVYY^c BZY^iZggVcZVc VXXZei^c\ Y^gZXi YdcVi^dch ( KdajciZZg ndjg i^bZ

December 21 - 27, 2016 â&#x20AC;¢ jfp.ms

EVgicZgh/

14

MEDITERRANEAN GRILL

G J ;ZY eVgi^X^eVcih XVc XdbZ id 6aVYY^c BZY^iZggVcZVc GZhiVjgVci [dg V [gZZ cjig^i^djh bZVa kZ\Vc dei^dch VkV^aVWaZ # I]Z [ddY l^aa WZ iV`Zdji dcan# LVci id hjeedgi i]^h \gZVi egd\gVb4 Ndj XVc bV`Z V YdcVi^dc g^\]i Vi i]Z gZhiVjgVci# ,(% AV`ZaVcY 9g# ?VX`hdc! BH q +%&"(++"+%(( q Hjc"I]jgh/ &&Vb " &%eb! ;g^"HVi/ &&Vb " &&eb

GIVE BACK

Learn more about Central Mississippi Non-Profits and How You Can Get Involved!

Stewpot’s 2016 Spirit of Giving Campaign If you have a client, a friend, or a relative (or numerous clients, friends, and relatives) that you wish to remember for the Holidays but have difficulty with the right gift, please consider giving a gift to Stewpot in their name. To accomplish this, please send an appropriate contribution to the address below and give Stewpot their name and address. Your donation will be tax deductible and they will receive a card from Stewpot that a donation was made in their name. You also will receive a card from Stewpot thanking you for your donation for income tax purposes. Please send info including the name, address, and whether it is an honorarium or a memorial to: Stewpot Spirit of Giving 2016 Attn: Michelle’ Bingham P O Box 3691 Jackson MS 39207 On the memo line of your check please fill in SOG 2016.

PAID ADVERTISING SECTION

c Yes, I would like to honor the following individuals with a special holiday contribution to Stewpot.

I understand that you will send each person a 2016 Holiday Greeting Card that will acknowledge each gift and mail a receipt to me for tax purposes.

Enclosed is my check in the amount of $_______ to cover these gifts.

Your Name __________________________________________ Address _____________________________________________ Recipient’s Name _______________________ Amount $______ Address _____________________________________________ Recipient’s Name _______________________ Amount $______ Address _____________________________________________ Recipient’s Name _______________________ Amount $______ Address _____________________________________________ Please charge this gift to my credit. Amount $______________ c MasterCard c Visa c American Express c Discover c One-time gift c Monthly gift Card No.: _____________________________ CVV#: _________ Name on Card: _______________________________________ Expiration Date: _____ / _____ Phone: __________________ Signature: ___________________________________________ Email Address: _______________________________________ For more information or to make your gift online, please visit www.stewpot.org.

To make a gift by telephone, please call 601.353.2759.

SUPPORT THE ARTS

Donations may be be given through our school’s parent support group, Power APAC A Cubed. All donations are tax deductible as this entity is recognized by the IRS as a 501(c)(3) organization.

Information may be requested at Power APAC 601-960-5387, please ask for Mrs. Shawn Morgan.

Donations may be mailed to Power APAC, attn: Mrs. Shawn Morgan, 1120 Riverside Dr., Jackson, MS 39202.

Thank you in advance for your support of this worthy cause.

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

Power Academic and Performing Arts Complex (APAC) high school vocalists will be performing in Austria during March 10-17, 2017.

These eighteen lovely ladies in grades 9-12 are seeking donations to assist them in making this journey to share their talents with the musical world of Vienna and Salzburg, Austria.

15

Love Thy Neighbor

How to Connect in Divided Times

by Donna Ladd

Y

ou can’t sugarcoat it. In the wake of the 2016 presidential campaign, these are tough, divisive times. We’re all hearing a lot about how Americans don’t talk to people who disagree with them, especially between races and economic classes.

We don’t know each other. We’re even worried about facing family members with different views during the holidays. You know, Thanksgiving went so well.

Social media, of course, doesn’t always help, and often hurts. We have very select networks of “friends”— many of whom we never see or even meet—and we can easily edit out, mute or block disparate points of view. It is an avenue for anonymous attacks and others ’splaining our own views to us, leaving many people frustrated and defensive about the “trolls” in our midst, and not wanting to engage across the gulfs. Then there are all those bots pretending to be people, many of them from

outside the nation, and all of them sowing dissension.

But the answer can’t be just staying separate from those who disagree with us, and never trying to bridge the gap. That’s how we became a red-blue, binary, divided nation in the first place. We need to seek the purple for the sake of our nation and democracy. As President Obama said in his Dec. 16 press conference, division “is the thing that makes us vulnerable.”

Looking at imminent family gatherings during this season of love and giving, how do we cope? If we want to begin to heal these divides, it won’t be easy, but we will all need to engage to keep this division from widening and weakening our communities and nation.

This GOOD Ideas issue offers ideas on how to do that in productive and loving, if sometimes intense and uncomfortable, ways without cussing out your weird uncle across the holiday dinner table. Let’s do this.

F i r s t , t h e Fa m i l y : rule

Be sincere No Lis

s

buzzwords

ten

deep

ly

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

You Love Them, But …

Let’s start with how to have a civil conversation with the people you care about the most, but who might have voted for a candidate you find despicable. Maybe you have no desire to talk to them about politics, but they always seem to bait you into it, or so it seems.

How to manage?

If you prefer to avoid having a political argument with someone you believe doesn’t debate fairly, or who just 16 wants to argue for argument’s sake, then

Te l l

ZILPHA YOUNG

Set groun d

stories

entally read Be m y

Or, talk fam ily

his

to

ry

you will need to be proactive and direct.

You can borrow a trick from more organized, structured dialogue strategies and set some ground rules in advance.

Think of your cousin who comes to the holiday table wearing a Trump or Clinton shirt, as one of our staffers had happen at Thanksgiving. You think he’s salivating to have a knock-down-dragout argument—so go ahead and speak up, sternly but with love. Say something like, “We all know it’s been a tough political season, and we’re on different sides

of the political table. Let’s agree not to talk politics today, and just enjoy each other’s company.”

Chances are, others will readily agree, even if not the one cousin.

In our staffer’s case, his grandmother did just that, basically declaring that politics were off-limits at her dinner table before it had a chance to take a sour turn. And all was peaceful.

ple you know. Make it human.

Think about the Bible and the movies and books that taught you a lesson. They do it with story, not data. It’s why I tell my writers never to begin a story with statistics or a dry recitation of “process”—you lose readers right there.

Instead, tell them a story they can relate to and feel the joy and pain. Think of all those pictures of Syrian children that say a lot more than dry numbers and facts.

… You Want to Have Real Dialogue Now, you may want to have a deep, productive conversation with family members to help mend the nation’s divides, and I encourage it because we’ve got to start somewhere. Why not here?

Vox.com offered five tips that I appreciate. Here they are with my thoughts added under each.

Be as sincere as possible.

This is especially important with family, as our education and daily experiences can be very different than when we hang out with our chosen friends. Don’t go home and act superior—I know I’ve been guilty of that—instead of being real and serious in your conversations.

You can speak your mind, but do it with kindness, humility and, as Vox recommends, a lot of compassion.

Tell a story rather than argue or debate issues or statistics.

The truth is, stories—not lectures— persuade and build empathy. Talk about your own experiences and those of peo-

Listen deeply rather than assuming.

These days it’s easy to call someone a racist or a misogynist rather than try-

Be in “the right mental place.”

These are not easy conversations, and you might not be ready to have them. You can decide to wait, which might mean declaring those rules I mentioned above, saying “I’m not ready to discuss this now” or deciding to ignore attempts to bait you into it. If you’re not ready to try, it can turn in raw anger and explosions that grandma sure won’t appreciate.

Read the Vox.com article at jfp.ms/voxtips.

TIP: Pivot to Family History

In the past, my partner and I have ended up in stressful political conversations, with me even walking out one time.

By the next visit, I had gotten deep into family history, and started talking about it at the beginning, even pulling up Ancestry.com to look up new stuff as everyone joined in. It’s a perfect diversion that brings family together about what they have in common. And it often offers surprises that can help widen the family circle. Try it.

P.S. If you have elderly relatives, record them telling family stories. You’ll regret not doing it later, and it’s a perfect conversation builder now.

Dialogue JXN

Join a free race dialogue presented by Jackson 2000.

Email jackson2000circles@ gmail.com

Courageous Conversations

In this time of intense division and distrust, dialogue is a must. If you pay attention, you’ll hear about a variety of ways to take part in group or community conversations, especially about race, and I highly recommend them. You can take part in a free Jackson 2000 dialogue circle right here in Jackson, or watch for upcoming opportunities developed by W.K. Kellogg’s “Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation” team, of which I’m now a part. The William Winter Institute for Racial Reconciliation in Oxford presents Welcome Table conversations around the state.

“The Welcome Table creates a safe space for diverse community stakeholders to form healthy relationships via open, honest communication,” its website (winterinstitute.org) says.

The Southern Poverty Law Center’s wonderful “Teaching Tolerance” (tolerance.org) project gives advice for “courageous conversations” on its website: “Sustained dialogue is a process used to transform relationships for the purpose of fostering meaningful change in any community.” And during my Kellogg fellowship, we routinely gathered in “wisdom circles” for a similar purpose.

These kinds of conversations are soul-affirming, and sometimes difficult, and they require a bit of courage.

But on the other side of the discomfort lies a connection to others you will never have if you don’t both share your experiences and listen. People continually discover common ground through these dialogues, as well as learn about challenges other people have that we don’t. They build empathy through story and honesty. And it helps people of all races face their own implicit biases about the other. Find yourself a good one, show up, be real, listen and be transformed, and make new friends.

Caution: Safety Vital

One thing every successful dialogue model I know of offers is a “safe space.” That is, the conversations happen with ground rules in place, usually not allowing interruptions or voiced judgment, guaranteeing confidentiality and with trained facilitators who can talk to you afterward to help you process what just happened.

This perceived safety is especially vital to inviting people into the space who might not feel welcome, such as white men who might feel like they’re blamed for everything but who want to participate or people of color who might be told what to think.

People need space to listen, talk and grow without being immediately pounded on—especially if they are willing to be there and share in the first place. It’s about sharing, not lecturing.

That said, “safe” can’t mean you won’t be challenged in your own thinking by hearing what others feel. That is the point.

What I’ve Learned

It’s tough to walk into a conversation, whether a brief one or a deliberate series of deep dialogues, and know that you may get beat up for what you say. Although new at this, I’ve been through a good number of “wisdom circles” and powerful back-and-forth dialogues through my fellowship with the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and I’ve learned a few tips that work for me.

Remember that it’s not all about you. It’s easy to become self-focused and defensive and look for slights in what someone else has to say. Take a breath and think before you judge, lash out or belittle someone for getting it wrong to your thinking.

Have compassion for everyone in the conversation or circle. All of us don’t know what we don’t know, and we have conversations to figure it out. Cut each other some slack.

If you’re the type to speak up quickly, take a breath and just listen for a while. This is especially true if you’re a member of a “dominant culture”—basically, the white folks who Like tend to control a lot of conversations. If you don’t usually speak up, look for the anything inner courage to participate. Your story is else, important to us all, too. talking

Remind yourself that your exabout perience is not always the right one. race gets Don’t be judge-y or an eye-roller.

Actively listen. As others talk, do you (a) easier listen to refute something they’re saying with or (b) think about the next thing you’re practice. going to say the whole time? If you focus fully on others’ words, your response will be authentic when you make it—and help calm your nerves.

Don’t jump in to fill a silent space. Be OK with the quiet so you and others can think and process what you’re hearing.

When you talk, try to distinctively end your sentences with brief breaks so others have an opportunity to enter the conversation, unless you’re in a dialogue that does not allow back December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

Do not rely on shorthand and buzzwords, like “privilege” (even if you believe they apply).

I understand my privilege as a white person even if I grew up relatively poor in a sexist society. But I won’t convince others of it by just telling them to “check your privilege.” Same with use of “racist” or even “hetero-normative.” Sure, discuss those issues, but don’t use those words as a way to name-call (or sound smarter) because it won’t work even if you get a momentary high from it. Yes, it may be useful to explain the difference between racism (systemic oppression by the majority) and bigotry (garden-variety prejudice that can flow any direction), but that needs to be done in a smart way, infused with story— and maybe later in the dialogue after you’ve found some common ground.

Then, the Community:

Zilpha Young

ing to relate to them why you believe what they said is offensive (which not everyone will like, either). But if you listen carefully to what they’re saying, or ask them why they voted for Trump, for instance, you might learn that they are deeply and spiritually opposed to abortion rights, and that is what drove their vote. So start there.

Even if you believe in the right to a legal abortion, that doesn’t mean we should disregard others views out of hand. It’s possible to have a conversation about abortion that acknowledges the deeply held views on both sides, while talking about ways to find common ground—such as things you can both do to keep abortion rare.

more CONNECT, see page 18

17

from page 17

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

Safest Space: Affinity+Identity During and after the election season, we’ve heard a lot about “identity politics,” often derisively. You know, when someone votes a certain way because they’re white, black, Latino, female, LGBT, etc.? Identity politics are a bad thing, we’re told. And they are, in many ways, especially if done in a divisive way.

The truth is, though, “identity politics” came about in the first place, at least for non-white-supremacist groups, because some dominant group marginalized those members. Think about it: How much would you hear about LGBT groups banding together if they weren’t discriminated against? Or women’s rights groups? Or,

18

even the Black Lives Matter movement?

It can be difficult to have cross-conversations between groups on different sides of identity politics. That is one reason “affinity groups” have sprung up on college campuses and beyond: to give voice to members of a group with “affinity” with each other, such as gender, race or even a common history.

When done well, affinity groups are not clubs; you must be a member of the group to participate. And the goals are positive: to identify ways to make positive strides. That is very different than coming together to strategize to hurt other groups.

Tolerance.org talks about a Muslim student group at a school in Maclean, Va., that discussed the problem with needing

DEFINED: What is ‘white fragility’?

“A state in which even a minimum amount of racial stress becomes intolerable, triggering a range of defensive moves. These moves include the outward display of emotions such as anger, fear, and guilt, and behaviors such as argumentation, silence, and leaving the stressinducing situation.”

—Robin DiAngelo See jfp.ms/fragility for full report.

to miss class to attend religious services, even as those of other faiths had days off.

The math teacher who facilitated helped them get Muslim holy days added to the school calendar.

Such groups help members find likeminded people and solutions that actually help them more easily live in the larger, more diverse community.

But, Whites-only?! Really?

Yes, this can be a good idea, believe it or not. We’re not talking about a defensive or supremacist group, of course. White affinity groups are a way for members to come together to explore race and racism, and maybe even the role their own families might have played in discrimination.

It is also a way to get around the common problem of white people being too uncomfortable or ashamed to talk about these issues initially in a diverse group.

And it can help those hampered by what is sometimes called “white fragility” get past the defensiveness of the country’s history of racism—basically to get past feeling as if their own skin color effectively makes them guilty in others’ eyes.

White affinity groups aren’t a way to let white folks off the hook, though. They are used as vital tools to help reluctant people find a way to have these conversations and see a way forward. Like anything else, talking about race gets easier with practice.

These groups can result in strong shared efforts to fight society’s racism, and to bridge divides. Allies are often born in white affinity groups.

“As an affinity group, White Students Confronting Racism provides a space for white people to develop our racial identity while simultaneously becoming effective anti-racist allies to people of color.”

Ali Michael and Mary C. Conger, White Students Confronting Racism

ZILPHA YOUNG

and forth, of course.

It’s OK to speak up if you think others are shutting down productive dialogue or not being respectful. It’s also OK to just stay quiet and choose not to talk, and just listen if that is most important for you.

Say “I’m sorry” when you interrupt, and try hard not to interrupt.

Listen for the points of commonality to expand on rather than the contention to argue over. And be fully, fully present.

The Magical Life of Being an Ally OK, this one is personal. I often see fellow white people so defensive at any mention of racism or the need to end it—such as the dramatically overblown reactions to people willing to say out loud that “Black Lives Matter” in the wake of numerous shootings of unarmed black people in America because it means white lives don’t—which is absurd.

We’ve all heard, or maybe said, the following many times. Mark each true or false.

1. That was all a long time ago. ____ 2. It’s all those crazy people in the KKK, not people I know and love. ____ 3. I don’t need to feel guilty about what I didn’t do. ____ 4. Black people need to get over it and move on. ____ 5. All lives matter! _____ (Answers: 1, 2 and 4 are false, while 3 and 5 are true and undisputed.)

Here’s the nut that is cracked from inside if you’re willing to try: It is a wonderful life to be an ally to people who are historically, or currently, oppressed in some way. As an ally who “does the work,” as it’s called when you get informed and engaged, you meet a wide array of caring people who don’t actually blame you for their plight, as long as you show up with an open heart and don’t blame the historically oppressed for oppression.

The love back and forth flows openly, and you learn fascinating history, much of it shared when we’re honest about it. Yes, there are exceptions: You’ll meet the occasional person who hates you for your skin color, but a white ally knows it can never be as bad for me as for people who are followed by clerks when they go shopping or profiled by police.

My point? It’s wonderful to be an ally, to listen, to love and sometimes to fight for an ever-widening array of friends, and to learn history that we all share, filed with heroes as well as villians. I believe that understanding what awaits on the other side of divides is the Holy Grail more people should seek and find. We just must be willing to go there.

TIP: Always Ask Why

If you really want to understand other people’s realities—such as why crime is worse in their community—take it back up the line.

That is, explore and ask people why they believe the problems exist, and be willing to listen. And don’t be defensive: Remember that you probably didn’t do those things 50 years ago, but the systems of segregation set up cycles of poverty and crime. Knowing that makes you smarter and makes it easier to help find solutions.

What We Share

Former Gov. William Winter is a national leader on race dialogue. He likes to say that all Americans discover they have basic desires in common when they take time to talk and listen. They include: • Good schools for their kids • Access to quality health care • Safe neighborhoods • Economic security

PAID ADVERTISING SECTION

Holiday Gift Guide

Last minute Christmas gifts and Stocking Stuffers?

N� proble�.

Shop � Rea� Dru� Stor�

3 JACKSON FAVORITES 1 CONVENIENT CARD

Mak� U� Par� Of Your Givin� Traditio�

3in1GiftCard.com

Thymes Frasier Fir, Franklin Readers, Nebo Flashlights, Complete Greeting Card Department, Pangburns Millonaires, Snoozies, Scarves, Collegiate Gifts and much, much more

Beemo� Drug� Maywood Mart 601-366-9431 beemondrugs.com

AVAILABLE IN-STORE & ONLINE

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

)KXG VJG IKHV QH CFXGPVWTG CPF ITGCV GZRGTKGPEGUª

5WTKP QH 6JCKNCPF FKPKPI IKHV EGTVKHKECVGU 5WTKP QH 6JCKNCPF )KHV %CTFU ECP DG RWTEJCUGF HQT CP[ COQWPV 3000 Old Canton Road, Suite 105, Jackson | (601)981-3205 Like us on Facebook! www.surinofthailand.com

Highland Village • Jackson, MS 39211 • www.buffalopeak.net • (601) 366-2557

19

LIFE&STYLE | food&drink Sugar Magnolia Takery (5417 Highway 25, Suite G, 601992-8110)

The holiday menu at Sugar Magnolia Takery includes items such as peanut-butter-praline balls, strawberry, blueberry and turtle cheesecakes; cranberrywalnut chicken salad; triple-chocolate, lemon or key-lime Bundt cakes; bourbon balls; meats such as glazed spiral ham, herb-roasted chicken, pork tenderloin, boneless turkey breast; and more.

Sugar Magnolia will take special orders up until Wednesday, Dec. 21, and will be open until 4 p.m. on Christmas Eve for pickup.

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

Broad Street Baking Co. (4465 Interstate 55 N., Suite 101, 601-362-2900)

This holiday season, Broad Street has apricot-ginger creamcheese Christmas-wreath king cakes, which are available until Christmas Eve. The bakery also has desserts such as glutensensitive chocolate-chip cookies, gingerbread men, and Hanukkah and Christmas-themed sugar cookies. For more information, call 601-362-2900 or visit broad20 streetbakery.com.

ty candy; mint ice candy (white chocolate and mint); chocolate reindeer and Santas; chocolate-covered strawberries; and more. For information, find Nandy’s Candy on Facebook.

Local Holiday Eats

by Dustin Cardon and Amber Helsel

C

hristmas is this weekend. If you’re trying to figure out what to cook, here’s a list of local restaurants and businesses that have specials for the holidays. flickr/kimberlykv

Cookin’ up a Storm (1491 Canton Mart Road, 601-957-1166)

For its holiday menu, Cookin’ up a Storm has dishes such as sweet-potato casserole; stuffing with sage sausage, apples and pecans; spinach Madeline, roasted seasonal vegetables; corn soufflé; squash casserole; scalloped pineapple; broccoli salad with raisins, pecans, bacon and a sweet dressing; desserts such as a chocolate fudge brownie and pecan pie; mint-lemonade tea; breakfast items such as mini cinnamon rolls and pecan-pie muffins; and more.

The business will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. the whole week of Christmas until Christmas Eve, Saturday, Dec. 24. It will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. that day. Catering orders must be placed by Wednesday, Dec. 21, for pickup on Christmas Eve. For more information, call 601-957-1166.

Char Restaurant (4500 Interstate 55 N., 601-956-9562)

For its holiday menu, Char has butter beans, smashed sweet potatoes, cornbread dressing, creamed spinach and a whole pecan pie. For more information, visit charrestaurant.com

Make your holiday easier, and still wonderfully delicious, by ordering from local restaurants and businesses this season.

Crazy Cat Eat Up (4500 Interstate 55 N., Suite 173, 601-957-1441)

For its Christmas catering menu, Crazy Cat has dishes such as cream-cheese mashed potatoes, green-bean almondine, sweetcorn pudding, wild-mushroom gravy, spinach Madeline, maplebourbon pecan pie, Andes mint chocolate-brownie pie, Milky Way pound cake and more. Crazy Cat will take orders until it can’t any more. Pick-up will be Friday, Dec. 23, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Nandy’s Candy (1220 E. Northside Drive, Suite 380, 601-3629553, nandyscandy.com)

Nandy’s Candy has treats such as caramel apples dipped in chocolate with a white- and darkchocolate drizzle and sprinkles; chocolate and caramel popcorn; homemade caramel sauce; divini-

Campbell’s Bakery (3013 N. State St., 601-362-4628; 123 Jones St., Madison, 769-300-2790)

For the holidays, Campbell’s has holiday-themed iced teacakes, petit fours and cupcakes, caramel cake, gluten-free themed petit fours and cupcakes, and more.

In addition to Christmas items, Campbell’s also has Hanukkahthemed cookies and petit fours.

For more information, find Campbell’s on Facebook.

McDade’s Market (multiple locations, mcdadesmarkets.com)

This holiday season, McDade’s has gallon-sized sides for eight to 10 people, including options such as cornbread dressing, turnip greens, candied yams, macaroni and cheese, and more.

Customers can pick up catering orders before 4 p.m. on Christmas Eve.

Strawberry Cafe (107 Depot Drive, Madison, 601-856-3822, strawberrycafemadison.com)

Strawberry Cafe has a special holiday family feast package for 10 to 12 people, which includes a choice of meat such as a pork loin or glazed boneless ham; herbed cornbread or oyster dressing, a choice of three sides such as four-seasons salad, green-bean casserole, macaroni and cheese, baked apples or potatoes au gratin; homemade cranberry sauce; rolls; and caramel pie. The deadline for orders is Wednesday, Dec. 21. For more information, visit strawberrycafemadison.com.

Primos Café (2323 Lakeland Drive, 601-936-3398; 515 Lake Harbour Drive, 601-898-3600)

For the holidays, Primos has a holiday catering menu that includes a dinner package for 10 to 12 with a whole turkey or ham; cornbread dressing; giblet gravy; a large vegetable such as a squash casserole; cranberry sauce; a dozen dinner rolls; and a choice of pie such as lemon icebox or sweet potato. The restaurant also has cheese straws or bursts for parties available in bags, boxes or tins.

Customers can buy meats, sides, desserts and breakfast items separately, and the menu has a corporate catering option. Pickup dates are from Dec. 22 until 10 a.m. on Dec. 24. Primos will be open for Christmas Eve breakfast on Dec. 24 but will close at 11 a.m.

For more information and to see the full catering menu, visit primoscafe.com.

Chimneyville Smokehouse (970 High St., 601-354-4665)

For its holiday menu, Chimneyville has meats such as smoked or fried turkeys, smoked ham, beef brisket, pork ribs and whole smoked chicken. The restaurant also has items such as barbecue sauce, cornbread dressing, giblet gravy, macaroni and cheese, sweet-potato casserole and cranberry sauce; desserts such as Mississippi mud, lemon-icebox or pecan pies; sweet or unsweet tea; and rolls, buns or cornbread. The restaurant can slice meats for $7

extra per item. Chimneyville will be open on Christmas Eve for pickup. For more information, call 601-354-4665.

Grant’s Kitchen (2847 Lakeland Drive, Flowood, 601-665-4764)

For its holiday menu, Grant’s Kitchen will have main courses such as 12- to 14-pound whole turkeys, chicken tetrazzini, chicken and dumplings, pot roast, brown gravy and cranberry sauce; sides such as cornbread dressing, stir-fry vegetables and green peas; prepared salads such as cole slaw and cucumber salad; breads such as dinner rolls and cornbread; and desserts such as pecan, turtle and chocolate-chess pies. The restaurant has a holiday package with seven to 10 servings that includes half of a roasted turkey with gravy, cornbread dressing, a choice of two sides and one pie; and a package with 15 to 20 servings that includes a whole roasted turkey with gravy, cornbread dressing, a choice of two sides and two pies.

Customers must pick up orders

by Friday, Dec. 23, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

1908 Provisions (734 Fairview St., fairviewinn.com)

On Christmas Eve, 1908 will host a Christmas dinner. The menu will have an appetizer of sweet potato-crusted shrimp with creole honey mustard followed with an arugula salad with chevre, toasted pecans and a spiced cranberry vinaigrette. For the entrée, 1908 will have a grilled t-bone steak with creamed kale, carrot steak fries and apple-sage compound butter, and for dessert an eggnog crème brulee with a chocolate- and peppermint-dipped pretzel for dessert. The dinner is $49.99 and includes all four courses. The dinner is Saturday, Dec. 24, from 5 to 9:30 p.m. Seatings are at 5, 5:15, 5:30 and 5:45 p.m. For more information, call 601-948-3429 or visit yelpreservations.com/r/1908provisions.

See and add more at jfp. ms/holidayroundup2016. Email food story ideas to amber@jackson freepress.com

JFPmenus.com Paid advertising section. Call 601-362-6121 x11 to list your restaurant

BARS, PUBS & BURGERS 4th & Goal * / +BDLTPO t

Wing Wars Champions. Freshly prepared food thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s never frozen. 360 degree view of sports on 16 HD TVâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

Fenianâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Pub & 'PSUJm DBUJPO 4U t Classic Irish pub featuring a menu of traditional food, pub sandwiches & Irish beers on tap.

Green Room #PVOET 4U +BDLTPO .4 t Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re still #1! Best Place to Play Pool - Best of Jackson 2016

Hal and Malâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 4 $PNNFSDF 4U +BDLTPO t Pub favorites meet Gulf Coast and Cajun specialties like red beans and rice, the Oyster Platter or daily specials.

Martinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Restaurant and Lounge 4PVUI 4UBUF 4U +BDLTPO t Lunch specials, pub appetizers or order from the full menu of po-boys and entrees. Full bar, beer selection.

MEXICAN/LATIN Cinco De Mayo -BLF )BSCPVS %S 3JEHFMBOE t

Cracker Barrel

Homestyle meals and gracious service are the norm at Cracker Barrel, now serving all-day breakfast. Traditional favorites, a full Kidsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; menu and their famous desserts.

And donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t forget the old country store up front!

6020 I-55, Jackson, MS 39211 601-977-1055

We pride ourselves on fresh, authentic Mexican food as well as atmosphere and guest satisfaction.

Jacoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Tacos 4 4UBUF 4U +BDLTPO t

to find out more visit

@VISITJACKSONMS

Tacos, burritos and quesadillas. Tex-Mex at its finest and freshest.

Las Palmas 4 8IFBUMFZ 4U 3JEHFMBOE t Fresh authentic Mexican food and atmosphere plus 2 for 1 Margaritas everyday.

Margaritas Mexican Restaurant & $PVOUZ -JOF 3E +BDLTPO t In Margaritas our goal has been to serve quality Mexican food at reasonable prices.

HEALTHY Freshii .BD,FO[JF -O 'MPXPPE t

Eat. Energize. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s our motto. Serving up made to-order burritos, soups, fresh salads and much more.

STEAK & SEAFOOD Ellis Seafood .FBEPXCSPPL 3E +BDLTPO t

8 8PPESPX 8JMTPO "WF t &MMJT "WF Serving Jackson over 25 years with our freshly fried seafood and boiled cajun shrimp, snow crab legs, and seasonal crawfish.

MEDITERRANEAN GRILL

ALADDIN GIFT CARDS

make the perfect gift 730 Lakeland Dr. Jackson, MS | 601-366-6033 | Sun-Thurs: 11am - 10pm, Fri-Sat: 11am - 11pm W E D ELIVER F OR C ATERING O RDERS Fondren / Belhaven / UMC area

Eslavaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Grille Eslavaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Grille -BLFMBOE %S 'MPXPPE t Seafood, Steaks and Pasta

Seafood, steaks and pastas with a Latin influence.

Fresh seafood, po-boys, lunch specials, boiled seafood specials, full bar and drink specials all week!

Tâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Beauxâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s )JHIXBZ & $MJOUPO t # 5FSSZ 3E #ZSBN t Tâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Beauxâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s serves up fresh seafood including oysters, shrimp and crab legs and the best crawfish this side of Louisiana.

MEDITERRANEAN/GREEK Aladdin Mediterranean Grill -BLFMBOE %S +BDLTPO t

Delicious authentic dishes including lamb dishes, hummus, falafel, kababs, shwarma.

Your Holiday Sweets Destination 1491 Canton Mart Rd. Jackson 601-956-7079

December 21 - 27, 2016 â&#x20AC;¢ jfp.ms

Sal & Philâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 0ME $BOUPO 3E 3JEHFMBOE t

21

{ Holiday Gift Guide }

Last-Minute Fun

by Amber Helsel

C

hristmas has been approaching ever so slowly, but now it seems to be coming in at warp speed. If you’re still trying to find last-minute gifts and stocking stuffers, here are some local, unique items to pick up.

25 days of Fitness,

Give the gift of health this year for Christmas and save $100 OFF the enrollment Donate a Coat for Operation Warm - UP

1. Mug $12, Mississippi Museum of Art

and receive your 1st month FREE

2. Tote bag $12, Thimblepress

(providing coats to those in need)

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

Check out our Facebook page! www.facebook.com/anytimefitnessjacksonms

22

901 Lakeland Place, Suite #10, Flowood, MS flowood@anytimefitness.com • 601.992.3488

3. Ornament $10, Fair Trade Green 4. Button $1, Swell-o-Phonic 5. Ornament $12, Fair Trade Green

2155 Highway 18, Suite E, Brandon, MS brandonms@anytimefitness.com • 601-706-4605

6. Kindness cards $22, Thimblepress

4924 I-55 North, Suite #107, Jackson, MS jacksonms@anytimefitness.com • 601-321-9465

7. Keychain $14, Thimblepress

2799 Hwy 49 S, Suite E, Florence, MS 39073 florencems@anytimefitness.com • 601-398-4036

8. Doodle kit $10, Mississippi Museum of Art

www.anytimefitness.com Voted One of the Best Places to Work Out Best of Jackson 2010-2012

Where 2 Shop

Thimblepress (113 N. State St.; 4500 Interstate 55 N., Suite 144; thimblepress.com) Fair Trade Green (2807 Old Canton Road, 601-987-0002) Swell-o-Phonic (2906 N. State St., 601-981-3547) Mississippi Museum of Art (380 S. Lamar St., 601-960-1515)

JFPmenus.com Paid advertising section. Call 601-362-6121 x11 to list your restaurant

AMERICAN/SOUTHERN CUISINE

HO! HO! HO!

1908 Provisions 'BJSWJFX 4U +BDLTPO .4 t

Experience traditional Southern flavors with an up-scale twist.

Relax with family and friends, or enjoy a special night out.

The Iron Horse Grill 8 1FBSM 4U +BDLTPO t The smell of charcoal greets you, the music carries you inside.

The Manship Wood Fired Kitchen / 4UBUF 4U +BDLTPO t The Manship transforms the essence of Mediterranean food while maintaining a southern flair.

Parlor Market 8 $BQJUPM 4U +BDLTPO t

Apricot-Ginger & Cream Cheese Wreath King Cake Available December 6-24 Ask for an order form at the counter or print online.

Seasonal Southern cuisine using fresh, local products in a beautifully appointed restaurant and fantastic service.

Two Sisters Kitchen / $POHSFTT 4U Southern-style lunch buffet. Mon-Fri, Sun.

ASIAN

Fusion Japanese and Thai Cuisine 5SFFUPQT #MWE 'MPXPPE t " )XZ .BEJTPO t

Specializing in fresh Japanese and Thai cuisine, our extensive menu features everything from curries to fresh sushi.

Little Tokyo "WFSZ #MWE 3JEHFMBOE t Warm and inviting Japanese restaurant offering Teppan-yaki, Sushi, authentic Japanese dishes, and a full bar.

bring the fami ly You

Surin of Thailand 0ME $BOUPO 3E +BDLTPO t Jacksonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Newest Authentic Thai & Sushi Bar with 26 signature martiniâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s and extensive wine list.

Gift Card Sale EXTENDED Buy 2 Get 1 FREE

BARBEQUE

Chimneyville Smoke House )JHI 4U +BDLTPO t

until December 24!

Family style barbecue restaurant and catering service in the heart of downtown Jackson.

Serving BBQ to Jackson for over 25 years, we smoke every rib, tip and link and top it with our award winning BBQ sauce!

Hickory Pit $BOUPO .BSU 3E +BDLTPO t

Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve got dessert.

The â&#x20AC;&#x153;Best Butts in Townâ&#x20AC;? features BBQ chicken, beef and pork along with burgers and poâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;boys.

The Pig and Pint / 4UBUF 4U +BDLTPO t

Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t Forget to Vote

Best Burger

Winner of Best of Jackson 2016 â&#x20AC;&#x153;Best BBQ.â&#x20AC;? Serving competition-style BBQ and a great beer selection.

Smokinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; South BBQ 4 1FBS 0SDIBSE 3E 3JEHFMBOE t â&#x20AC;&#x153;This BBQ is as good as any Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve eaten judging Memphis in May for 18 years. For great BBQ, this is the placeâ&#x20AC;?- Jerry Vaughn

681 S. PEAR ORCHARD RD. RIDGELAND 769.300.2500 - smokinsouthbbqms.com 769.300.2500

December 8-21 www.bestofjackson.com

Madison - Jackson - Oxford WWW.BEAGLEBAGELCAFE.NET

1060 E County Line Rd #22, Ridgeland, MS 39157 601-899-0038

December 21 - 27, 2016 â&#x20AC;˘ jfp.ms

E & L Barbeque #BJMFZ "WF +BDLTPO t

23

WEDNESDAY 12/21

THURSDAY 12/22

FRIDAY 12/23

“Art Soup: Christmas Edition” is at Hal & Mal’s.

Coach D.M. Howie signs copies of “Rock & Fire” at Lemuria Books.

“The DJs That Stole Christmas” is at the King Edward Hotel.

BEST BETS dec 21- 28, 2016 Courtesy Jason Gibson

WEDNESDAY 12/21

Dave Stone’s Holly Jolly Tour is at 9 p.m. at Offbeat (151 Wesley Ave.). The Los Angeles-based stand-up comedian has appeared on “Last Comic Standing,” “The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson” and “Squidbillies.” Mark Brooks, Nardo Blackmon and Daniel Palmer also perform.

Doors open at 8 p.m. $10 admission; find it on Facebook.

THURSDAY 12/22

Courtesy The Chosen Productions

Author William Ferris signs copies of “The South in Color: A Visual Journal” at 10:30 a.m. at Lemuria Books (Banner Hall, 4465 Interstate 55 N., Suite 202). $35 book; call 601-366-7619; lemuriabooks.com. … The Vamps performs at 7:30 p.m. at Duling Hall (622 Duling Ave.). The soul and jazz group is also known for performing styles such as Latin and reggae. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. $10 in advance, $15 at the door; call 601-292-7121; ardenland.net.

Jason Gibson and Destiny Project perform for the PRIME Inc. Fundraising Gala on Friday, Dec. 23, at Hilton Jackson.

7 p.m. at the Country Club of Jackson (345 St. Andrews Drive). Includes heavy hors d’oeuvres, a cash bar, a raffle drawing and music from Charles Carter and RonThaDJ. Proceeds benefit the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority’s youth and community enrichment initiatives in Jackson. $75 admission, $600 VIP table for eight; find it on Facebook. The Weeks perform at 10 p.m. at Martin’s Restaurant & Bar (214 S. State St.). Young Valley also performs. For ages 18 and up. $20 admission; call 601-354-9712; email ryboltproductions@comcast.net; martinslounge.net.

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

SATURDAY 12/24

(Left to right) Assistant Cameraman Ellis Hampton, Director Essence Wallace and Director of Photography Quran Squire work behind the scenes of “Judgment Day,” which screens Monday, Dec. 26, at the Alamo Theatre.

FRIDAY 12/23

The PRIME Inc. Fundraising Gala is from 6 to 9 p.m. at Hilton Jackson (1001 E. County Line Road). Includes music from Jason Gibson and Destiny Project, food, guest speakers and more. Proceeds go toward PRIME’s efforts to restore Sheppard Brothers Park. Purchase tickets by Dec. 21. $50; email weare@jacksonprime.org; planetreg.com/ 24 charitygala. … “The Premiere: A Red Carpet Affair” is at

The Santa Chaser Run is at 8 a.m. at Fleet Feet Sports (500 Highway 51, Ridgeland). The untimed fun run includes three-, five- and eight-mile run options.

Includes giveaways and free breakfast bites. Free; call 899-9696; email staff@fleetfeetjackson.com; fleetfeetjackson.com.

SUNDAY 12/25

by TYLER EDWARDS

All black attire is required. $20 admission, $150 VIP table for four; call 601-937-4660; eventbrite.com.

MONDAY 12/26

Annual Kwanzaa Celebration is at 6 p.m. at the Smith Robertson Museum and Cultural Center (528 Bloom St.). The celebration of pan-African culture is in its 50th year. Traditional cultural food is served. Free; call 601-3975655; womenforprogress.net. … “Judgment Day” film screening is at 7:30 p.m. at Alamo Theatre (333 N. Farish St.). Filmed in Mississippi, the short film is about a veteran police officer shooting a young black college student. $20 at the door, $15 in advance; call 352-3365; eventbrite.com.

events@ TUESDAY 12/27

jacksonfreepress.com Fax: 601-510-9019 Daily updates at jfpevents.com

The Cats Purring Holiday Classic Vol. II is from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. at Hal & Mal’s (200 Commerce St.). Includes performances from Dent May, DJ Scrap Dirty and DJ Pleather. For ages 18 and up. $5 admission; find it on Facebook. … The All Black Party is from 9 p.m. to 3 a.m. at Next Level Experience (3645 Highway 80 W.). Includes performances from DJ Finesse and DJ Bigg Shocka.

The “Steakhouse Favorites” cooking class is from 6 to 8 p.m. at Farmer’s Table Cooking School at Livingston (1030 Market St., Flora). Participants learn how to make dishes such as grilled filets, wedge salads, buttermilk chive mashed potatoes and more. $79; email bengle@farmerstableinlivingston.com; farmerstableinlivingston.com.

WEDNESDAY 12/28

The Bejeweled Snowflake Tea is from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at High Biscuits (7048 Old Canton Road, Ridgeland). The holiday event features a pop-up menu with jewel- and snowflake-themed desserts. Open seating, but reservations recommended. For all ages. Prices vary; call 769-300-4948; find it on Facebook.

Christmas in Canton—“City of Lights” Dec. 21-23, 5 p.m., at Historic Canton Square (Canton). The square is decorated with over 200,000 lights and features a carousel, trolley rides around the square and local museums on the square.

Free, prices for rides and museums vary; call 601-859-1307; email jana@cantontourism; cantontourism.com.

Annual Kwanzaa Celebration Dec. 26, 6 p.m., at Smith Robertson Museum and Cultural Center (528 Bloom St.). The celebration of pan-African culture is in its 50th year. Traditional cultural food is served. Free; call 601-397-5655; womenforprogress.net.

KIDS Holiday Spectacular 2016 Dec. 23, 9 a.m.-7 p.m., Dec. 24, 9 a.m.-5 p.m., at Mississippi Children’s Museum (2145 Museum Blvd.). The holiday event includes interactive story times, gingerbread house building, community performances, photos with Santa and more. Visit website for full schedule of events. Included with admission ($10, free for under age 1); call 601981-5469; email info@mschildrensmuseum.org; mschildrensmuseum.org.

FOOD & DRINK Bejeweled Snowflake Tea Dec. 28, 11 a.m.-4 p.m., at High Biscuits (7048 Old Canton Road, Ridgeland). The holiday social features a pop-up menu with jewel- and snowflake-themed desserts. Open seating, but reservations recommended. For all ages. Prices vary; call 769-300-4948; find it on Facebook.

SPORTS & WELLNESS Santa Chaser Run Dec. 24, 8 a.m., at Fleet Feet Sports Jackson (500 Highway 51, Ridgeland).

The untimed fun run includes three-, five- and eight-mile run options. Includes giveaways and free breakfast bites. Free; call 601-899-9696; fleetfeetjackson.com.

College Equestrian Prospect Camp Dec. 28, 9 a.m.-3 p.m., Dec. 29, 8 a.m.-1 p.m., at Providence Hill Farm (2600 Carlsley Road). Mississippi College’s equestrian coaching staff works with participants to develop skills needed for collegiate-level equestrian competition. Includes lunch. $295; call 601-757-8233; email bshufelt@ mc.edu; find it on Facebook.

STAGE & SCREEN Dave Stone’s Holly Jolly Tour Dec. 21, 9 p.m., at Offbeat (151 Wesley Ave.). The Los Angelesbased stand-up comedian has appeared on “Last Comic Standing,” “The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson” and “Squidbillies.” Mark Brooks, Nardo Blackmon and Daniel Palmer also perform. Doors open at 8 p.m. $10 admission; find it on Facebook.

“Judgment Day” Film Screening Dec. 26, 7:30 p.m., at Alamo Theatre (333 N. Farish St.).

Filmed in Mississippi, the short film is about a veteran police officer shooting a young black college student. Includes a red carpet event and

Q&A with the cast and crew, including Jackson native director Essence Wallace. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. $20 at the door, $15 in advance; call 601-352-3365; eventbrite.com.

• Martin’s Christmas Showcase Dec. 25, 8 p.m.

Rooster Blues and Nekisopaya perform. Doors open at 7 p.m. Admission TBA; call 601-3549712; martinslounge.net

Mark Normand Dec. 28, 8-10 p.m., at Brewsky’s (3818 W. 4th St., Hattiesburg). Jamie Arrington is the host. The stand-up comedian is a New Orleans native now based in New York and has made appearances on Comedy Central, “Conan,” “Inside Amy Schumer,” “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” and “Last Comic Standing.” Dan Scott and Timothy Watkins also perform. $10 admission; ticketweb.com.

The DJs That Stole Christmas Dec. 23, 10 p.m., at King Edward Hotel (235 W. Capitol St.). DJ Unpredictable, DJ IE and DJ Freeze perform. $21 admission; find it on Facebook.

SLATE

Cats Purring Holiday Classic Vol. II Dec. 25, 9 p.m.-2 a.m., at Hal & Mal’s (200 Commerce St.). Includes performances from Dent May, DJ Scrap Dirty and DJ Pleather. For ages 18 and up. $5; find it on Facebook.

the best in sports over the next seven days

by Bryan Flynn

Sports fans have plenty to watch between parties, spending time with family, opening gifts and other holiday activities.

This week, they can tune in for NFL bowl games, college basketball and the NBA. Thursday, Dec. 22

College basketball (6-8 p.m., SECN): The MSU men host Morehead State. … College basketball (6-8 p.m., ESPN2): The USM men host San Diego State. … College basketball (8-10 p.m., SECN): The UM Rebels men host South Alabama.

Friday, Dec. 23

NBA (6:30-9 p.m., NBATV): Guard Russell Westbrook with the Oklahoma City Thunder has been a triple-double tear; see if the Boston Celtics can slow him down.

Saturday, Dec. 24

College football (7-11 p.m., ESPN): Enjoy the beautiful island scenes from the Hawaii Bowl, as Hawaii faces Middle Tennessee.

Sunday, Dec. 25

NBA (1:30-4 p.m., ABC): Check out an NBA Finals rematch between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors. … NFL (7:30-11 p.m., NBC): The Denver Broncos fight for their playoff lives against their AFC West foe, the Kansas City Chiefs.

CONCERTS & FESTIVALS The Vamps Dec. 22, 7:30 p.m., at Duling Hall (622 Duling Ave.). The soul and jazz group is also known for performing styles such as Latin and reggae. Mark Roemer and Jamie Weems also perform. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. $10 in advance, $15 at the door; call 601-292-7121; ardenland.net.

Events at Martin’s Restaurant & Bar (214 S. State St.) • The Weeks Dec. 23, 10 p.m. The Jacksonnative rock band performs. Young Valley also performs. Doors open at 9 p.m. $20 admission; call 601-354-9712; martinslounge.net.

• “The Scribe” Dec. 21, 4 p.m. Matthew Guinn signs copies. $25.95 book; call 601366-7619; lemuriabooks.com.

• “The South in Color: A Visual Journal” Dec. 22, 10:30 a.m. William Ferris signs copies. $35 book; lemuriabooks.com.

• “Never Give a Cat a Poodle Cut (and Other Stories About Growing up in Yazoo City)” Dec. 22, noon. Belinda Stevens signs copies. $15 book; call 366-7619; lemuriabooks.com.

• “Rock & Fire” Dec. 22, 4 p.m. Coach D.M. Howie signs copies. $34.95 book; call 601366-7619; lemuriabooks.com.

EXHIBIT OPENINGS Art Soup: Christmas Edition Dec. 21, 11 a.m., at Hal and Mal’s (200 Commerce St.). Includes a silent auction, art vendors, live music, food and drink specials and more. Proceeds from the silent auction go to the Harold T. and Hal White Scholarship for the Culinary Arts. Free; call 601948-0888; find it on Facebook.

Monday, Dec. 26

College football (10 a.m.-1:30 p.m., ESPN): Begin your day with MSU against Ohio in the St. Petersburg Bowl. … NFL (7:30-11 p.m., ESPN): End your day with former MSU star Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys against the Detroit Lions.

Tuesday, Dec. 27

College football (9:15 p.m.-12:30 a.m., ESPN): If you feel like staying up late, check out the Cactus Bowl between Boise State and Baylor.

Wednesday, Dec. 28

College basketball (6-8 p.m., SECN+): The UM Rebels women host Mississippi Valley State. … College basketball (7-9 p.m., SECN+): The MSU women host Northwestern State, as they try to stay undefeated.

Check out the JFP Sports Blog for a complete schedule of all the bowls.

Look for a preview rundown of the St. Petersburg Bowl, as well.

Follow Bryan Flynn at jfpsports.com, @jfpsports.

All Black Party Dec. 25, 9 p.m.-3 a.m., at Next Level Experience (3645 Highway 80 W.).

Includes performances from DJ Finesse and DJ Bigg Shocka. All black attire is required. $20 admission, $150 VIP table for four; call 601937-4660; eventbrite.com.

LITERARY & SIGNINGS Events at Lemuria Books (Banner Hall, 4465 Interstate 55 N. Suite 202) • “100 Things to Do in Jackson Before You Die” Dec. 21, 1 p.m. Natalie West signs copies. $16 book; lemuriabooks.com.

CREATIVE CLASSES Grant Writing Class Dec. 21, 9 a.m., at Training Academy (3000 Saint Charles St.). Tuition includes two days of instruction, a workbook, access to alumni forums, discussions and more than 200 sample grant proposals. $455; call 800814-8191; grantwritingusa.com.

Events at Farmer’s Table Cooking School at Livingston (1030 Market St., Flora) • Steakhouse Favorites Dec. 27, 6-8 p.m.

Participants learn how to make dishes such as grilled filets, wedge salads, buttermilk chive mashed potatoes and more. $79; call 601-5066821; email bengle@farmerstableinlivingston. com; farmerstableinlivingston.com.

• Northern Italian Dinner Dec. 28, 6-8 p.m.

Participants learn how to make dishes such as veal scallopini, risotto, tiramisu, roasted asparagus and more. $89; call 601-506-6821; email bengle@farmerstableinlivingston.com; farmerstableinlivingston.com.

BE THE CHANGE PRIME Inc. Fundraising Gala Dec. 23, 6-9 p.m., at Hilton Jackson (1001 E. County Line Road). Includes live music from Jason Gibson and Destiny Project, food, guest speakers and more. Proceeds go toward PRIME’s efforts to restore Sheppard Brothers Park. Purchase tickets

by Dec. 21. $50; email weare@jacksonprime.org; planetreg.com/charitygala.

The Premiere: A Red Carpet Affair Dec. 23, 7 p.m., at Country Club of Jackson (345 St. Andrews Drive). Includes heavy hors d’oeuvres, a cash bar, a raffle drawing and music from Charles Carter and RonThaDJ. Proceeds benefit the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority’s youth and community enrichment initiatives in Jackson. $75 admission, $600 VIP table for eight; call 6688318; email tammy_rankin2333@yahoo.com; find it on Facebook.

Check jfpevents.com for updates and more listings, or to add your own events online. You can also email event details to events@jacksonfreepress.com to be added to the calendar. The deadline is noon the Wednesday prior to the week of publication.

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

COMMUNITY

25

DIVERSIONS | music

OYSTERS

THURSDAY

12/22

ON THE HALF SHELL 5-9 P.M.

FRIDAY

12/23

WEEKS W/ YOUNG VALLEY

THE

(HOLIDAY HOMECOMING) 10 P.M. // 18+

SUNDAY

12/25

MARTIN’S ANNUAL CHRISTMAS SHOWCASE

sadly, Walker died suddenly on Oct. 5.

Walker performed with countless local musicians over the years, but some people may not know that he also backed iconic acts such as The O’Jays and B.B. King, even playing on the late blues icon’s 1971 album “Live from Cook County Jail.”

“It brings it into focus to me just how amazing this group is,” Burkes says of Walker’s passing. “The more time goes by—we’re 20 years with this—it makes me appreciate it that much more, especially with someone like Booker passing, which affected me a lot. I had a real affinity for Booker, and any time we had an out-of-town gig, we’d ride together, and I’d drag stories out of him that he would never talk about.”

ing everything from Latin jazz music to reggae to their repertoire as they performed original compositions and favorite covers for private events. As a result, they began playing in the local club scene less and less, Leach says. Due in part to the economic downturn, though, clients began asking if the band would perform as a quartet instead of its full lineup.

“Well, yeah, we can do that,” Leach would tell them, “but you’re not getting The Vamps, you know?”

“Things go in cycles,” he says. “We were the hot new fun, different group, so people were like, ‘I don’t want your standard Motown or your standard funk,’ which now they want back. They want the Doctor Zarr’s, the Molly Ringwalds, be-

W/

MONDAY

8 P.M.

12/26

OPEN MIC NIGHT

$5 APPETIZERS (DINE IN ONLY)

SHRIMP BOIL 5 - 10 PM

TUESDAY

12/27

$1 PBR & HIGHLIFE $2 MARGARITAS 10pm - 12am

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

UPCOMING SHOWS

26

12/30 - Southern Komfort Brass Band 12/31 - Martin’s Annual New Year’s Eve Blowout w/ Cedric Burnside Project 1/5 - Jaguardini w/ Ships in the Night 1/7 - Lightnin Malcolm w/ Shake It Like a Caveman 1/11 - Jackson Indie Music Week - Martin’s Lineup 1/20 - A Live One (Exploring The Music of Phish) 1/22 - American Aquarium 1/28 - New Madrid 2/7 - The Funky Knuckles (Snarky Puppy’s Label) 2/9 - Lucero w/ special guest Esmé Patterson 2/10 - Andrew Duhon 10 p.m.

2/17 - Wild Adriatic 4/6 - Papadosio (Pattern Integrities Spring Tour)

See Our New Menu

WWW.MARTINSLOUNGE.NET

214 S. STATE ST. DOWNTOWN JACKSON

601.354.9712

Imani Khayyam

ROOSTER BLUES & NEKISOPAYA

W

hen The Vamps performed at Duling Hall in December 2015, attendees kept telling the musicians how thrilled they were that the band was playing a reunion show. Of course, the issue with that, drummer Denny Burkes says, is that they never broke up in the first place.

“It’s still very much a living, breathing organism,” he says.

In Mississippi’s ever-changing music scene, it is rare to find a band with the longevity of The Vamps, which first formed in 1998. While fans won’t find the Jackson soul and jazz outfit playing a monthly rotation of Martin’s Restaurant & Bar, Hal & Mal’s and Ole Tavern on George Street as it did in the old days, the seven-man troupe

The Vamps Rev Up

by Micah Smith

(Left to right) Denny Burkes, Barry Leach, Todd Bobo and Adib Sabir are four of the members of Jackson soul and jazz ensemble The Vamps.

still plays weddings and corporate gigs as well as larger events such as the Township Jazz Festival.

One factor that has contributed to the band’s long life is that each member plays with a variety of other acts, keeping The Vamps as a sort of family reunion when they get together.

Both guitarist Barry Leach and vocalist-percussionist Adib Sabir play in several Jackson duos and trios; Burkes plays with Eric Stracener and the Frustrations and with the Steve Deaton Three; bassist-keyboardist Bob Pieczyk plays with the Big Easy Three and the Lucky Hand Blues Band; trumpet player Terry Miller also plays with the Big Easy Three and with Southern Komfort Brass Band; and alto saxophonist Kevin Lewis plays with Greenfish.

Those who haven’t seen The Vamps in the past year will notice Todd Bobo on tenor sax, following longtime member Booker Walker’s retirement from music last year.

Leach says they had hoped Walker would join them onstage for their upcoming show at Duling Hall this Thursday, Dec. 22, but

Despite life and other projects pulling the players in many directions, Burkes says The Vamps has been his favorite group to work with because it manages to be challenging and easy at the same time—the latter because the members gel so well and no one has an ego, and the former because the arrangements all happen on the fly.

“This was built on the soul-jazz of the late ’60s and the ’70s, and Blue Note Records, where it’s improv, you know,” Leach says. “We’re just like, ‘Here’s the tune, and we’re just going to get a certain groovy kind of thing to it. Take off for a while; explore with your instrument.’”

While Leach writes lead sheets to provide a basic structure, the musicians mostly have free rein onstage to play off one another and take songs down different paths.

The band has only rehearsed two times in almost 20 years, both prior to recording sessions for their albums, 1998’s “Loose Wig” and 2001’s “Angle Not Distance.”

Throughout its early years, The Vamps became a highly sought-after commodity in the metro area for their versatility, add-

cause things come around and go around.”

Even so, The Vamps aren’t short on supporters in the capital city and beyond, whether they’re diehard fans of the group’s original songs or casual listeners who just appreciate a creative take on a classic tune.

“I think it’s because we’ve been doing it so long and because of our reputation that we’ve worked hard at getting,” Leach says. “A lot of our fan base is not going to come out to Martin’s anymore because they have families. They’re the old guys! But the word (spreads): ‘Oh, The Vamps, yeah!’

So we have the new kids who are open to something they haven’t heard before.”

In addition to their live performances, Burkes says the musicians hope to record a third album in the future, but as with all things The Vamps, it is a matter of finding the time.

The Vamps perform at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 22, at Duling Hall (622 Duling Ave.). Mark Roemer and Jamie Weems also perform. Admission is $10 in advance or $15 at the door. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. For more information, visit ardenland.net.

Music listings are due noon Monday to be included in print and online listings: music@jacksonfreepress.com.

Dec. 22 - Thursday Char - Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m.

Duling Hall - The Vamps w/ Mark Roemer & Jamie Weems 7:30 p.m. $10 advance $15 door ardenland.net Fitzgerald’s - Doug Hurd 7:30 p.m.

Georgia Blue, Flowood - Jason Turner Georgia Blue, Madison - Aaron Coker Iron Horse Grill - Chris Gill 6 p.m.

Kathryn’s - Steel Country 6:30 p.m. free Pelican Cove - Richard Lee Davis 6 p.m.

Shucker’s - Acoustic Crossroads 7:30 p.m. free Soulshine, Flowood - Jes Trio 7 p.m.

Sylvia’s - Thursday Night Live feat.

The Blues Man & Sunshine McGhee 9 p.m. free

DEC. 23 - Friday

DEC. 26 - Monday Char - Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m.

Hal & Mal’s - Central MS Blues Society (rest) 7 p.m.

Kathryn’s - Joseph LaSalla 6:30 p.m. free

MATT COLLETTE WITH

MONDAYS 9PM - 1AM

DEC. 27 - Tuesday Char - Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m.

Fenian’s - Open Mic Kathryn’s - Rockin’ the Keys 6:30 p.m. free Last Call Sports Grill - Top-Shelf Tuesdays feat. DJ Spoon 9 p.m.

Margarita’s - John Mora 6 p.m.

DEC. 28 - Wednesday Char - Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m.

Fitzgerald’s - Doug Hurd & Chris Link 7:30 p.m.

Kathryn’s - Jeff Maddox 6:30 p.m. free Pelican Cove - Stevie Cain Shucker’s - Acoustic Crossroads 7:30 p.m. free

Fe

ni

s an

Pu

b

is

th

e

p

c la

e

to

be

r fo

O

p

en

M

ic

&

Ka

C

I M N

o ra

ke

!

T

H NIG

E

OP

WITH

MATT NOOE

TUESDAYS STARTING AT 9PM

SPONSORED BY

% &ORTIl CATION 3T s www.fenianspub.com -ON &RI AM AM s 3AT PM AM 3UN PM AM

Alanna Mosley

DEC. 24 - Saturday Ameristar Bottleneck Blues Bar, Vicksburg - Mike Rob & the 601 Band 8 p.m. free Georgia Blue, Flowood - Chase Waters Kathryn’s - Andrew Pates 7 p.m. free Pop’s Saloon - Dylan Moss Band 9 p.m.

Reed Pierce’s, Byram - Chasin’ Dixie 9 p.m. free

DEC. 25 - Sunday Hal & Mal’s - Cats Purring Holiday Classic, Vol. II feat. Dent May, DJ Scrap Dirty & DJ Pleather 9 p.m.-2 a.m.

Martin’s - Christmas Showcase feat. Rooster Blues & Nekisopaya 8 p.m.

Next Level Experience - All Black Party feat. DJ Finesse & DJ Bigg

Submit listings to music@ jacksonfreepress.com by noon Monday for inclusion in the next issue.

If you’re a local musician and would like to be considered for coverage in the JFP, email Music Editor Micah Smith at micah@ jacksonfreepress.com.

12/21 - Primative w/ Heavy Pull - Proud Larry’s, Oxford 12/22 - Muscadine Bloodline - Zydeco, Birmingham 12/23 - The Gills - Vinyl Music Hall, Pensacola 12/23 - Fred LeBlanc - House of Blues, New Orleans 12/23 - Mannheim Steamroller Christmas - The Orpheum Theatre, Memphis 12/26 - The Little Raine Band - Zydeco, Birmingham 12/27 - Dr. John & the Nite Trippers - Tipitina’s, New Orleans 12/28 - Gillian Welch - Lyric Theatre, Birmingham 12/28 - St. Paul & the Broken Bones - The Alabama Theatre, Birmingham

REEN

Great gifts for pipe and cigar smokers.

O RO M

Ameristar Bottleneck Blues Bar, Vicksburg - Mike Rob & the 601 Band 8 p.m. free Burgers & Blues - Adib Sabir 6-10 p.m.

Char - Ronnie Brown 6 p.m.

Country Club of Jackson - The Premiere: A Red Carpet Affair feat. Charles Carter & RonThaDJ 7 p.m. $75 admission $600 VIP table F. Jones Corner - The Blues Man 10 p.m. $1; Jonte Mayon midnight $10 Fitzgerald’s - Johnny Crocker & Debbie Buie 7 p.m.

Georgia Blue, Flowood - Larry Brewer 6:30 p.m.

Georgia Blue, Madison - Brian Jones Iron Horse Grill - Chuck Bryan & the Texas Blues 9 p.m.

Shocka 9 p.m. $20 admission $150 VIP table Smith Park - Christmas in Smith Park w/ Carols noon

-Pool Is Cool-

We’re still #1!

Best Place to Play Pool Best of Jackson 2016

INDUSTRY HAPPY HOUR Daily 11pm -2am

DAILY BEER SPECIALS Come see us in The Quarter on Lakeland near Cups...

learn more about our historic shop at www.thecountrysquireonline.com

12pm - 7pm

POOL LEAGUE Mon - Fri Night DRINK SPECIALS "52'%23 s 7).'3 s &5,, "!2 GATED PARKING BIG SCREEN TV’S LEAGUE AND TEAM PLAY B EGINNERS TO A DVANCED I NSTRUCTORS A VAILABLE

444 Bounds St. Jackson MS

601-718-7665

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

Char - Tommie Vaughn 6 p.m.

Fitzgerald’s - Sid Thompson 7:30 p.m.

Hal & Mal’s - New Bourbon Street Jazz Band (brew pub) Kathryn’s - Larry Brewer & Doug Hurd 6:30 p.m. free Kemistry - Open Mic Night 9 p.m.

601-665-2073 Offbeat - Dave Stone Comedy 9 p.m. $10 Pelican Cove - Stevie Cain 6 p.m.

Shucker’s - Silverado 7:30 p.m. free

Kathryn’s - Acoustic Crossroads 7 p.m. free King Edwart Hotel - The DJs That Stole Christmas feat. DJ Unpredictable, DJ Freeze & DJ IE 10 p.m. $21 admission $165 VIP table M Bar - Flirt Fridays feat. DJ 901 free Martin’s - The Weeks w/ Young Valley 10 p.m. $20 Ole Tavern - Lady L & the River City Band 9 p.m.

Pelican Cove - Alanna Mosley 6 p.m.

Pop’s Saloon - Trouble Trio 9 p.m.midnight Reed Pierce’s, Byram - Chasin’ Dixie 9 p.m. free Shucker’s - Andrew Pates 5:30 p.m. free; Lovin Ledbetter 8 p.m. $5; Chad Perry 10 p.m. free Soulshine, Flowood - Andy Tanas 7 p.m.

Soulshine, Ridgeland - Ron Etheridge 7 p.m.

WonderLust - DJ Taboo 8 p.m.2 a.m.

E TH G

Dec. 21 - Wednesday

JB Lawrence

MUSIC | live

27

BY MATT JONES

48 It runs between “This American Life” segments 50 Battery terminal 53 Countless centuries 54 Romance/thriller novelist Hoag 55 With 60-Across, anesthesia administered by a small monkey?

60 See 55-Across 64 George Gershwin’s brother and collaborator 65 Like child’s play 66 “As a rule,” in a dict. entry 67 Dart in one direction 68 Final purpose 69 Avery of animation fame 70 Serpentine character?

37 Website with lots and lots of instructions 38 Lab maze runners 40 Hacking tool 43 Drew in 44 “Could you put that in layman’s terms?”

45 Teen’s rental from a menswear store 46 “I’m ___ hurry ...”

49 Examine carefully 50 Craft tapered on both ends 51 Eugene O’Neill’s “___ for the Misbegotten” 52 Animal on Australia’s coat of arms

54 B’way box office purchase 56 August, in Paris 57 11 1/2 wide, e.g.

58 Dwarf planet that dwarfs Pluto 59 License plates 61 “The Jungle Book” snake 62 European designer’s monogram 63 “Popeye” surname ©2016 Jonesin’ Crosswords (editor@ jonesincrosswords.com)

Last Week’s Answers

For answers to this puzzle, call: 1-900-226-2800, 99 cents per minute. Must be 18+. Or to bill to your credit card, call: 1-800 655-6548. Reference puzzle #803

Down

“Small Furry Critters” —they’re so cute!

Across

1 Crater’s edge 4 Airer of vintage films 7 Cold-weather phenomenon also known as pogonip 13 “What ___ you afraid of?”

14 Paris’s ___ de la Cité 15 Juliet’s family name 17 Rowboat implement 18 With 20-Across, Rocky Road ripple full of a nutty animal?

20 See 18-Across 22 Super Bowl on Feb. 3, 2019 23 “Homer came up with the drink, but I came up with the idea of charging $6.95

for it” speaker 24 Sang from the hilltops, maybe 28 European sports car marque 32 Love letters?

33 Distinctive historical period 34 Existentialist aquatic animal?

39 “You’re ___ party ...”

40 Tennis’s Bjorn and namesakes (but not the “Star Trek” aliens, plural-wise) 41 “An idea!”

42 Poker hand that beats three field mice of a kind?

45 Common (and unimaginative) first episode title 47 Empty, as a mathematical set

1 Country in Southeast Asia ...

2 ... and in the Middle East ...

3 ... and in South America 4 Actor central to the movie “Four Rooms” 5 Dry red table wine 6 Nothing other than 7 I, Freudian?

8 GoPro product, briefly 9 Gp. overseeing toxic cleanups 10 Problem for a parker, perhaps 11 Basic skateboarding trick 12 Imaginary surface coinciding with the earth’s sea level 16 Lead-in to light 19 Cagey 21 Nearly twenty-year-old Apple 25 You can’t live without it 26 “And all she wants to ___ dance, dance” (Don Henley lyric) 27 Endo- opposite 28 Classic TV nickname, with “The” 29 Plotting 30 Final purpose 31 “Sounds like a good plan to me” 35 “48 ___” (1982 action-comedy) 36 Fictional account

the gift of one cup of coffee or a dozen cups in a little black card

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

Christmas Eve Service

28

December 24 10:30 pm

Christmas Day Service

December 25 10:00 am

650 E.South Street • Jackson • 601.944.0415

St. Alexis

Episcopal Church

BY MATT JONES Last Week’s Answers

“Kaidoku”

Each of the 26 letters of the alphabet is represented in this grid by a number between 1 and 26. Using letter frequency, word-pattern recognition, and the numbers as your guides, fill in the grid with well-known English words (HINT: since a Q is always followed by a U, try hunting down the Q first). Only lowercase, unhyphenated words are allowed in kaidoku, so you won’t see anything like STOCKHOLM or LONG-LOST in here (but you might see AFGHAN, since it has an uncapitalized meaning, too). Now stop wasting my precious time and SOLVE! psychosudoku@gmail.com

Capricorn writer Edgar Allan Poe has been an important cultural influence. His work appears on many “must-read” lists of 19th-century American literature. But during the time he was alive, his best-selling book was not his famous poem “The Raven,” nor his short story “The GoldBug,” nor his novel, “The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket.” Rather, it was “The Conchologist’s First Book,” a textbook about mollusk shells, which he didn’t actually write, but merely translated and edited. If I’m reading the astrological omens correctly, 2017 will bring events to help ensure that your fate is different from Poe’s. I see the coming months as a time when your best talents will be seen and appreciated better than ever before.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):

“My goal is to create a life that I don’t need a vacation from,” says motivational author Rob Hill Sr. That’s an implausible dream for most people. But in 2017, it will be less implausible than it has ever been for you Aquarians.

I don’t guarantee that it will happen. But there is a decent chance you’ll build a robust foundation for it, and thereby give yourself a head start that enables you to accomplish it by 2019. Here’s a tip on how to arouse and cultivate your motivation: Set an intention to drum up and seek out benevolent “shocks” that expand your concepts of who you are and what your life is about.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):

The birds known as winter wrens live in the Puget Sound area of Washington. They weigh barely half an ounce, and their plain brown coloring makes their appearance unremarkable. Yet they are the avian equivalents of the opera star Pavarotti. If they weighed as much as roosters, their call would be 10 times as strong as the rooster’s cocka-doodle-doo. Their melodies are rich and complex; one song may have more than 300 notes. When in peak form, the birds can unleash cascades at the rate of 36 notes per second. I propose that we make the winter wren your spirit animal in 2017, Pisces. To a casual observer, you may not look like you can generate so much virtuosity and lyrical power. But according to my analysis, you can.

ARIES (March 21-April 19):

NPR’s Scott Simon interviewed jazz pianist and songwriter Robert Glasper, who has created nine albums, won a Grammy, and collaborated with a range of great musicians.

Simon asked him if he had any frustrations—“grand ambitions” that people discouraged him from pursuing.

Glasper said yes. He’d really like to compose and sing hip-hop rhymes. But his bandmates just won’t go along with him when he tries that stuff. I hope that Glasper, who’s an Aries, will read this horoscope and take heart from what I’m about to predict: In 2017, you may finally get a “Yes!” from people who have previously said “No!” to your grand ambitions.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20):

Humans have drunk hot tea for more than two millennia.

Chinese emperors were enjoying it as far back as the second century B.C. And yet it wasn’t until the 20th century that anyone dreamed up the idea of enclosing tea leaves in convenient one-serving bags to be efficiently brewed. I foresee you either generating or stumbling upon comparable breakthroughs in 2017, Taurus. Long-running traditions or customs will undergo simple but dramatic transformations that streamline your life.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20):

“What you do is what counts and not what you had the intention of doing,” said Pablo Picasso. If I had to choose a single piece of advice to serve as your steady flame in 2017, it might be that quote. If you agree, I invite you to conduct this experiment: On the first day of each month, take a piece of paper and write down three key promises you’re making to yourself. Add a brief analysis of how well you have lived up to those promises in the previous four weeks. Then describe in strong language how you plan to better fulfill those promises in the coming four weeks.

CANCER (June 21-July 22):

During the campaign for U.S. President in 1896, Democratic candidate William Jennings Bryan traveled 18,000 miles as he made speeches all over the country. But the Republican candidate, William McKinley, never left his hometown of Canton, Ohio. He urged people to visit him if they wanted

to hear what he had to say. The strategy worked. The speeches he delivered from the front porch of his house drew 750,000 attendees and played an important role in his election. I recommend a comparable approach for you in the coming months, Cancerian. Invoke all your attractive power as you invite interested parties to come see you and deal with you on your home turf.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):

“Poetry is a way of knowledge, but most poetry tells us what we already know,” writes poet Charles Simic. I would say the same thing about a lot of art, theater, film, music and fiction: Too often it presents well-crafted repetitions of ideas we have heard before. In my astrological opinion, Leo, 2017 will be a time when you’ll need to rebel against that limitation. You will thrive by searching for sources that provide you with novel information and unique understandings. Simic says: “The poem I want to write is impossible: a stone that floats.” I say: Be on the lookout for stones that float.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):

The Economist magazine reports that if someone wanted to transport $10 million in bills, he or she would have to use eight briefcases. Sadly, after evaluating your astrological omens for 2017, I’ve determined that you won’t ever have a need for that many. If you find yourself in a situation where you must carry bundles of money from one place to another, one suitcase will always be sufficient. But I also want to note that a sizable stash of cash can fit into a single suitcase. And it’s not out of the question that such a scenario could transpire for you in the coming months. In fact, I foresee a better chance for you to get richer quicker than I’ve seen in years.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):

For a bald eagle in flight, feathers are crucial in maintaining balance. If it inadvertently loses a feather on one wing, it will purposely shed a comparable feather on the other wing. According to my analysis of the astrological omens, this strategy has metaphorical meaning for your life in 2017. Do you want to soar with maximum grace and power? Would you like to ascend and dive, explore and scout with ease and exuberance? Learn from the eagle’s instinctual wisdom.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):

In August 2012, a group of tourists visited the Eldgja volcanic region in Iceland. After a while, they noticed that a fellow traveler was missing. Guides organized a search party, which worked well into the night trying to track down the lost woman. At 3 a.m., one of the searchers suddenly realized that she herself was the missing person everyone was looking for. The misunderstanding had occurred many hours earlier because she had slipped away to change her clothes, and no one recognized her in her new garb. This is a good teaching story for you to meditate on in 2017, Scorpio. I’d love to see you change so much that you’re almost unrecognizable. And I’d love to see you help people go searching for the new you.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):

In 2017, you will be at the peak of your ability to forge new alliances and deepen existing alliances. You’ll have a sixth sense for cultivating professional connections that can serve your noble ambitions for years to come. I encourage you to be alert for new possibilities that might be both useful for your career and invigorating for your social life. The words “work” and “fun” will belong together! To achieve the best results, formulate a clear vision of the community and support system you want.

Homework: Send me predictions for your life in 2017. Where are you headed? Go to RealAstrology.com; click on “Email Rob.”

Services DirectTV NFL Offer DIRECTV. NFL Sunday Ticket (FREE!) w/Choice All-Included Package. $60/ mo for 24 months. No upfront costs or equipment to buy. Ask about next day installation! 1- 800-374-1943 Meet Singles!

Meet singles right now! No paid operators, just real people like you.

Browse greetings, exchange messages and connect live. Try it free. Call now: 800-513-9842

Help Wanted Digital Media Intern Jackson Free Press seeks a parttime digital media intern for content creation, SEO tasks, website editing and e-mail newsletter creation and support. This paid, hourly position is flexible and can be designed around classwork or other work for the right candidate. Write todd at jacksonfreepress dot com with your resume and your availability.

Part-Time Distribution Manager The Jackson Free Press seeks a part-time distribution manager to take ownership of the day-today distribution operations of the Jackson Free Press. Your role will be to work with the Lead Driver and contract drivers to ensure that the Jackson Free Press, BOOM Jackson and other contract publications are distributed on-time and efficiently.

You’ll also interact with the public, business managers, and others to ensure that distribution locations are satisfied with our service and in order to secure new distribution locations and allocate resources effectively. Must be a good communicator and good presenter as the JFP’s main liaison to local distribution partners. Roughly 30 hours per week, about 2/3 is spent driving and distributing and 1/3 on route management and public interaction. Please send your resume and a cover letter or e-mail to todd@jacksonfreepress.com.

TO PLACE A CLASSIFIED AD:

Post an ad, call 601-362-6121, ext. 11 or fax to 601-510-9019.

Deadline: Mondays at Noon.

Shut Up and

WRITE!

START DATE: JAN 7, 2017

Resolved to write? Register now for JFP Editor Donna Ladd’s new creative non-fiction class series.

All levels welcome in the 101 classes.

Class meets Saturdays from noon to 2:30 p.m.

Jan. 7, 21, Feb. 4, 25, March 4 + Free Freelance Writing Workshop Classes recorded; attend online or watch later.

Meets at JFP in Capital Towers, 125 S. Congress St., #1324, $350, includes snacks + workbook

New Year’s Special

$275

until midnight on Dec. 31

writingtochange.com Must register: Call 601-966-0834 or email class@writingtochange.com

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):

BULLE TIN BOARD: Classifieds As low as $25!

29

PAID ADVERTISING SECTION. CALL 601-362-6121 X11 TO LIST YOUR BUSINESS

------------- H E A LT H C A R E / W E L L N E S S ---------------The Headache Center

COMING UP _________________________ WEDNESDAY 12/21

ART SOUP CHRISTMAS EDITION!

Thursday, December 22

Jackson, (601)940-5499 Personalized and courteous services to valued customers in Madison, Hinds, Rankin or Jackson County. Contact us today for a FREE NO HASSLE ESTIMATE.

---------------------- AUTOMOTIVE ----------------------J & J Wholesale Service & Repair

Early Show in the Brew Pub

3246 Hwy 80 W., Jackson, (601) 360-2444 Certified Technician, David Rucker, has 40+ years of experience.

Mr. Rucker specializes in a/c, front end, part replacement, brakes, select services and repairs. Appointments only.

11am-9pm

MICHAEL LASKIN, JOE CARROLL, AND JOE PARTRIDGE

D’LO TRIO _________________________ Restaurant - Free!

FRIDAY 12/23

Closed For A Private Function _________________________ SATURDAY 12/24

DJ Special ALEX ARREN

AND

DENT MARTIN

Red Room - Doors 9 - Show 10-2

18 And Up - $5 _________________________

MONDAY 12/26

CLOSED _________________________ TUESDAY 12/27

PUB QUIZ

w/ Jimmy Quinn

Restaurant - 7:30pm - $2 to Play _________________________

December 21 - 27, 2016 • jfp.ms

WEDNESDAY 12/28

30

NEW BOURBON STREET JAZZ BAND Restaurant - Free! _________________________ OFFICIAL

HOUSE VODKA

Visit HalandMals.com for a full menu and concert schedule

601.948.0888 200 S. Commerce St. Downtown Jackson, MS

Solar Control

Tri-county Tree Service

NEW BOURBON STREET JAZZ BAND

THURSDAY 12/22

-------------------- HOME SERVICES -------------------291 US-51 E4, Ridgeland, MS 39157 (601)707-5596 Mississippi’s only full-service 3M Authorized window film dealer.

Services include, residential, graffiti shield and automotive tinting.

15 Art Vendors and Silent Auction to benefit The Harold T and Hal White Scholarship Fund

Restaurant - Free! _________________________

Renaissance at Colony Park, Suite #7205, Ridgeland, (601)366-0855 Accurately diagnoses headache syndromes and tailors an individualized treatment plan for you that includes lifestyle modification and FDA-approved medical treatments.

-------------------- BANKS/FINANCIAL -------------------

Friday, January 6

SOUTHERN AVENUE from memphis, tn this band stirs up a soulful, funky, rock n’ roll stew built on a foundation of the blues

NEW SHOW!

Saturday, January 28

ERIC LINDELL

combination of sweet, blue-eyed soul with foot-stomping R&B, swamp pop, funk and blues

Wednesday, February 1

NEW SHOW!

DYLAN LEBLANC regarding his new album: “it’s a near flawless record, cohesive and self-assured.” - no depression

NEW SHOW!

Tuesday, February 7

FRED EAGLESMITH canadian alternative country singer-songwriter NEW SHOW!

Wednesday, March 1

EILEN JEWELL

the idaho native’s unique originals feature a blend of influences from early blues, rockabilly, and surf-noir, to 1960s era rock and roll

Saturday, April 22 RAY WYLIE HUBBARD

NEW SHOW!

when it comes to down ‘n’ dirty roots ‘n’ roll, nobody in the wide world of americana music today does it better than ray wylie hubbard

JX//RX COMPLETE SHOW LISTINGS & TICKETS

dulinghall.com

Members Exchange

107 Marketridge Dr. Ridgeland, 5640 I-55 South Frontage Rd. Byram 101 MetroPlex Blvd. Pearl, (601)922-3250 Members Exchange takes the bank out of banking. You will know right away that you are not just a customer, you are a member.

Guaranty Trust

2 Professional Parkway, Ste A Ridgeland, (601)307-5008 Your friendly source for mortgage advice and service in FHA, USDA, VA, Jumbo and conventional mortgages.

------------------- FOOD/DRINK/GIFTS ------------------Beckham Jewelry

4800 N Hwy 55 #35, Jackson, (601)665-4642 With over 20 years experience Beckham Jewelry, manufactures, repairs and services all types of jewelry. Many repairs can be done the same day! They also offer full-service watch and clock repair.

Fondren Cellars

633 Duling Ave, Jackson, (769)216-2323 Quality wines and spirits in a relaxed environment. Voted Best Wine and Liquor store by Jackson Free Press readers.

Nandy’s Candy

Maywood Mart, 1220 E Northside Dr #380, Jackson, (601)362-9553 Small batch confections do more than satisfy a sweet tooth, they foster fond traditions and strong relationships. Plus, enjoy sno-balls, gifts for any occasion and more!

McDade’s Wine

Maywood Mart, 1220 E Northside Dr #320, Jackson, (601)366-5676 McDade’s Wine and Spirits offers Northeast Jackson’s largest showroom of fine wine and spirits. Visit to learn about the latest offerings and get professional tips from the friendly staff!

Playtime Entertainment

1009 Hampstead Blvd, Clinton, (601)926-1511 Clinton’s newest high energy video gaming and sports grille destination.

-------------------- TOURISM/ARTS ----------------------Mississippi Museum of Art

380 South Lamar St. Jackson, (601) 960-1515 MMA strives to be a fountainhead attracting people from all walks to discuss the issues and glories of the past and present, while continuing to inspire progress in the future.

Ardenland

2906 North State St. Suite 207, Jackson, (601) 292-7121 Jackson’s premiere music promoter with concerts around the Metro including at Duling Hall in Fondren. www.ardenland.net

Natural Science Museum

2148 Riverside Dr, Jackson, (601) 576-6000 Stop by the museum and enjoy their 300-acre natural landscape, an open-air amphitheater, along with 2.5 miles of nature trails. Inside, meet over 200 living species in the 100,000 gallon aquarium network.

Mississippi Children's Museum

2145 Museum Boulevard, Jackson, (601) 981-5469 The Mississippi Children’s Museum provides unparalleled experiences that ignite a thirst for discovery, knowledge and learning in all children through hands-on and engaging exhibits and programs focusing on literacy, the arts, science, health and nutrition.

---------------- BEAUTY SHOP/SALON ------------------Barnette’s Highland Bluff

4400 Old Canton Rd, Jackson, (769) 230-4648 Barnette’s specializes in custom hair color as well as beautiful precision cuts.

Highland Bluff

Formerly Barnetteâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Dry Bar 1400 Old Canton Road, Suite 110, Jackson

769-230-4648

Now offering full services: Blow-outs Color Haircutting & Design Specialty Services Up Do Style

Make Your Appointments Today!

JFP SEEKS DIGITAL MARKETING INTERN (PAID)

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

The Mississippi Youth Media Project is looking for collaborators, donations and volunteers to teach us.

Visit youthmediaproject.com to learn how you can help train young people to do great media and learn job skills.

Read student work from summer 2016 at jxnpulse.com.

Media: Run YMP stories!

Write: info@youthmediaproject.com The Kellogg Fellowship Leaders Alliance (KFLA) is the ďŹ scal agent of MYMP. Visit kďŹ&#x201A;a.org/MYMP for info.

Thank You to our Sponsors:

December 21 - 27, 2016 â&#x20AC;˘ jfp.ms

-RLQ WKH -)3 WHDP DQG SXW \RXU FRQWHQW PDUNHWLQJ DQG GLJLWDO VNLOOV WR XVH 3DLG LQWHUQVKLS SDUW WLPH SRVLWLRQ IRU WKH ULJKW FDQGLGDWH 3HUIHFW IRU D PDUNHWLQJ ,0& VWXGHQW ZLWK VRPH NQRZOHGJH RI VRFLDO PHGLD PDUNHWLQJ 6(2 DQG FRQWHQW PDUNHWLQJ SULQFLSOHV +70/ DQG &66 NQRZOHGJH D SOXV *DLQ YDOXDEOH H[SHULHQFH DQG PDNH VRPH SRFNHW PRQH\ ZRUNLQJ ZLWK WKH -)3¡V FOLHQWV RQ GLJLWDO PDUNHWLQJ LQLWLDWLYHV 6(2 6(0 FDPSDLJQV H PDLO PDUNHWLQJ QHZVOHWWHUV DQG PXFK PRUH (PDLO WRGG#MDFNVRQIUHHSUHVV FRP ZLWK FRYHU OHWWHU DQG UHVXPH

31

Win yeti coolers, gift cards, yeti cups, etc

PIG & PINT

GIFT CARDS

Every Tuesday @ 7PM

Mention This Ad

Get $20 Off Your Cleaning (Offer ends December 31, 2016)

INSIDE HIDEAWAY Beside Planet Fitness 5100 I-55N Jackson,MS | 769ï&#x161;º208ï&#x161;º8283 www.4thgoal.com / the4thandgoal

jfpevents.com

House Wine

Up-to-date, comprehensive and more mobile-friendly than ever!

BUY ONE GET ONE FREE

Domestic Beer $1 OFF

1030-A Hwy 51 â&#x20AC;¢ Madison

Behind the McDonalds in Madison Station

601.790.7999

1002 Treetops Blvd â&#x20AC;¢ Flowood Behind the Applebeeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s on Lakeland

601.664.7588

Introducing the New JFP Events Calendar at

MONDAY - THURSDAY

The Perfect Stocking Stuffer

3URIHVVLRQDO &OHDQLQJ DQG 5HSDLU 6LQFH

-)3

Terra Renewal - FT CDL A Tanker Driver Needed If you are qualified and interested, please contact us.

We want to hear from you!

Call Jeremy @ 479.462.2756 or Email bthomas@darlingii.com or fax resume to 479.229.3734 EOE/M/F/Vet/Disabled

%RRP

1(:6

-)30HQXV

%HVWRI-DFNVRQ

23,1,21

&ODVVLILHGV

$576

-)3'DLO\

086,&

$GYHUWLVH

&RQWDFW

&$/(1'$5

6LJQ LQ

VHDUFK

/,)( 67</(

)22' '5,1.

632576

-)3 (YHQWV &DOHQGDU )ZIRXW ` (MWGSYRX 8MGOIXW

+VIIRWO] &PYIKVEWW

3GX à¡´ (YPMRK ,EPP .EGOWSR 17 'EXIKSVMIW 7IEVGL

8MQI

8LMW GEPIRHEV FVSYKLX XS ]SY F] .*4 (IEPW

*VMHE] 3GX

.EGOWSR 17

QM

'SRJIVIRGI SR XLI 0MFIVEP %VXW

EQ

0MZI 0IEH 7MQYPGEWX

EQ

.EGOWSR 7XEXI 9RMZIVWMX] ` .EGOWSR 17 QM

.EGOWSR 7XEXI 9RMZIVWMX] ` .EGOWSR 17 QM

*VMHE] *SVYQ

EQ

*SWWMP *VMHE]

EQ

1MWWMWWMTTM 7XEXI *EMV

EQ

/SMRSRME 'SJJII ,SYWI ` .EGOWSR 17 QM

1MWWMWWMTTM 1YWIYQ SJ 2EXYVEP 7GMIRGI ` .EGOWSR 17 QM

1MWWMWWMTTM 7XEXI *EMVKVSYRHW ` .EGOWSR 17 QM

open in browser PRO version

%HH )ZIRX

%HZIVXMWI LIVI

pdfcrowd.com

Are you a developer? Try out the HTML to PDF API

0MZI EX 0YRGL 2IPPMI 1EGO ERH 0SRRIÂ&#x201D; +ISVKI

EQ

*SSH 8VYGO *VMHE]

EQ

1MWWMWWMTTM 1YWIYQ SJ %VX ` .EGOWSR 17 QM

&I 7IIR

For more information on advertising call 601-362-6121 x17 7QMXL 4EVO ` .EGOWSR 17 QM

1MWWMWWMTTM 'SPPIKI ;SQIR W 7SGGIV ZW :EPHSWXE 7XEXI

TQ

/MHW /SPPIKI ,IEPXL ERH ;IPPRIWW

TQ

1MWWMWWMTTM 'SPPIKI 1IR W 'VSWW 'SYRXV] ;EXWSR *SVH -RZMXEX«

TQ

(MRRIV E 1SZMI

TQ

&IPLEZIR 9RMZIVWMX] :SPPI]FEPP ZW 9RMZIVWMX] SJ 8I\EW EX (EPPEW

TQ

'SGOXEMP 4EVX]

TQ

8LI +IRIWMW 4EVX]

TQ

1MWWMWWMTTM 'SPPIKI ` 'PMRXSR 17 QM

.EGOWSR 7XEXI 9RMZIVWMX] ` .EGOWSR 17 QM

1MWWMWWMTTM 'SPPIKI ` 'PMRXSR 17 QM

&VMGO 7XVIIXW SJ 'PMRXSR ` 'PMRXSR 17 QM

&IPLEZIR 9RMZIVWMX] ` .EGOWSR 17 QM

;SRHIV0YWX ` .EGOWSR 17 QM

*SV SRP] E HE] %HZIVXMWI LIVI